Report: Derrick Lewis Fought JDS While Seriously Injured

Former UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos finished Derrick Lewis (watch highlights here) in impressive fashion in the main event of last night’s (Sat., March 9, 2019) UFC on ESPN+ 4 at INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas.

The opening round was somewhat of a back-and-forth affair until dos Santos landed a vicious spinning back kick to the body that hurt Lewis. He attempted to play possum by throwing a huge punch but was clearly hurt in between rounds. It was a punch upstairs in the second that was his undoing, however. “Cigano” blasted him with his trademark overhand right to pour on the strikes for the TKO stoppage.

It was a great win over a former title contender for dos Santos, his third in a row. While he certainly hurt ‘The Black Beast’ with his vaunted offense, Lewis may have been fighting with a serious injury as well. According to reporter Helen Yee, Lewis fought dos Santos with a significantly compromised knee that had a torn ACL, MCL, and meniscus:

”Spoke to sources in Derrick Lewis’ camp who tell me Derrick came in w torn meniscus, ACL & MCL from a month ago. Lewis refused to pull from fight. That’s why Bob [Perez] told him to finish after the first round. It wasn’t just his stomach. Knee was giving out. What a warrior.”

Spoke to sources in Derrick Lewis’ camp who tell me Derrick came in w torn meniscus, ACL & MCL from a month ago. Lewis refused to pull from fight. That's why Bob told him to finish after the first round. It wasn't just his stomach. Knee was giving out. What a warrior #UFCWichita

— Helen Yee (@HelenYeeSports) March 10, 2019

Jump Kicks With Torn ACL?

Lewis looked solid enough in the early going of round one, throwing low kicks, high kicks, and even jumping kicks. If he did all of those things with a torn ACL and MCL, it would absolutely be one of the most impressive displays of toughness the UFC has ever seen.

‘The Black Beast’ ha been known to fight through injuries before. He noticeably suffered through a lingering back injury in his 2018 fight with Francis Ngannou. He was able to secure a unanimous decision in what many felt was the worst fight of last year. Lewis blasted his own performance afterward.

The back injury, while limiting, most likely wasn’t as serious as something like a torn ACL and the other ailments which would severely limit your mobility and stability. Against a speedy, powerful heavyweight like dos Santos, it’s almost assuredly a recipe for disaster.

What do you think? Did Lewis look injured in Wichita, or was JDS just the better man?