Longtime UFC heavyweight contender Derrick Lewis said that he has never seen his upcoming opponent, Josh Hokit, fight before.
Lewis meets Hokit at UFC Freedom 250, which takes place on June 14 on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C. The fight came about in a very interesting way, as Lewis was placed on the card at the personal request of United States President Donald Trump.
The president was cageside when Hokit defeated Curtis Blyades in a “Fight of the Year” candidate at UFC 327 last month in Miami. After Hokit put on an amazing heavyweight performance, Trump asked UFC president Dana White why Lewis wasn’t on the upcoming White House card. The UFC then called up Lewis immediately after the Hokit fight and booked him against the emerging heavyweight star, Hokit, for the upcoming mega event. It is no doubt one of the most highly anticipated fights on a seven-fight card that is all killer, no filler when you look at the big names set to fight on it.
Derrick Lewis Has Never Seen Josh Hokit Fight Before
On Friday in Newark, ahead of UFC 328, the UFC had all of the White House fighters on stage for a pre-fight press conference. The presser was pure insanity, as Hokit went after several of the UFC’s top stars with his big mouth, including Alex Pereira and Alex Topuria. The press conference got so chippy that UFC security was forced to remove Hokit from the stage.
After the presser, Lewis was asked by UFC on Paramount+ reporter Megan Olivi what he thought about Hokit’s antics. According to “The Black Beast,” he has never been involved with something like that before. He says he didn’t know what to expect from Hokit, because he’s never seen him fight before and knows nothing about him. All he knows is that Hokit has a big mouth.
“I don’t know, it was crazy. It was probably one of the craziest press conferences I’ve been a part of,” Lewis said (via MMAFighting.com).
“I really couldn’t hear nothing he was saying. I really couldn’t. I tried, I couldn’t. I really never watched none of his fights, so I really don’t know. I really don’t know nothing about him. But I’ve heard that he’s just a clown. That’s all.”
Derrick Lewis is a Big Underdog Against Josh Hokit
According to the current betting odds for Lewis vs. Hokit, the 41-year-old Lewis is a +260 betting underdog against Hokit, who is a -310 favorite. Given Hokit is only 28 years old, undefeated, and has the wrestling advantage in this fight, it makes sense that he is the betting favorite.
That being said, Lewis is someone who has pulled off many upsets during his UFC career. He also has the most all-time knockouts in UFC history — in any weight class — with 16. So you can’t count Lewis out of this fight, particularly since he has a real puncher’s chance. That being said, he’d probably be doing the right thing by watching some tape on Hokit. For as much as Hokit is known as a loudmouth, he’s a heck of a fighter, and Lewis would be wise to know what he’s getting himself into before these two get locked into the Octagon on June 14 at the White House.
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