“The Black Beast” is still targeting the multi-title MMA champ he calls a “so-called legend,” using post-win interviews at UFC Vegas 19 to promote a future fight.
“I want Overeem next,” Lewis said after violently stopping Curtis Blaydes in the main event of this past Saturday’s event at UFC APEX. “I’m already greased and oiled up for him, so we ready.”
Overeem is just two weeks removed from a bloody TKO loss to Alexander Volkov, who was the eighth fighter to knock out the 40-year-old former Strikeforce, K-1 and DREAM champion and snapped his two-fight winning streak.
Lewis, meanwhile, picked up his fourth straight win, also extending his record for most UFC heavyweight knockouts at 12 (and tying former champ Vitor Belfort for the most in promotional history). Volkov was knockout No. 10 with a record-breaking comeback.
After Overeem’s knockout win, Lewis wasted little time jabbing his rival online.
A highlight-reel finish of Blaydes gave Lewis a strong case for a title eliminator, if not a shot at the winner of an upcoming title rematch between champ Stipe Miocic and top contender Francis Ngannou. But he wants to stay busy rather than wait for opportunities, and that’s where Overeem comes in.
“Soon as possible,” he said when asked about a timeline for the fight. “As soon as he passes his concussion protocol, whatever, his suspension, whatever he got.
“I don’t care [about his loss]. He’s had a couple of losses in a row. It’d be cool just to fight him, because he’s a so-called legend. So it’d be cool to fight somebody like that. And also, he’s been talking trash. He’s been saying his teammate, Curtis, could handle this lightweight. We’ve been trying to fight him for years, and he turned down the fight four times already.”
Given their alleged history and Lewis’ penchant for concussing his opponents, the question of Overeem’s willingness to give the green-light was raised. That, of course, was an opportunity for Lewis to needle his rival.
“He might take it,” Lewis said. “He’s been hit in the head a few times, so he might forget all about what happened tonight. So he’ll probably take it.”
“He’s from Netherlands, so you never know,” Lewis added. “Them guys out there, they stay high.”
If there’s one thing that might scuttle the matchup once again – or two if you count the UFC’s interest in booking a fight between fighters on opposite ends of their recent resumes – it’s Lewis’ disinterest in the demands of training for a five-round fight.
“I don’t need no main event,” he said. “I don’t deserve no main event. I don’t want to go five rounds. I hate five rounds. My body is like, ‘Man, keep f*cking around, we’re going to retire your ass.’ But I hate five rounds.”
And, of course, there’s the possibility Lewis isn’t at all serious about fighting Overeem and he’s indulging his well-known trolling habits. Fans might want to wait for an official UFC announcement before they invest too much into seeing this apparent grudge realized.
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