(This story first appeared in the Nashville Tennessean.)
The post-victory celebration has become a calling card for UFC all-time knockout leader Derrick Lewis.
But despite a handful of now-legendary moments in the aftermath of his previous wins, none has topped what followed his highlight-reel first-round knockout over undefeated Tallison Teixeira in the main event of UFC’s Fight Night from Nashville on July 12 at Bridgestone Arena.
After his signature pound against the canvas and stripping of the shorts, Lewis hopped on the phone with President Donald Trump, thanks to some assistance from UFC CEO Dana White.
“(It ranks) probably No. 1,” Lewis said of the celebration. “Just because the president had called me. We started talking about business and I told him wait until I get to the White House and we’ll really talk. It was pretty cool to have the president talk to me.”
Lewis (29-12) made his case to feature on a proposed summer 2026 UFC card that White and Trump are working to bring to the White House, an event virtually every fighter on the card expressed interest in being a part of.
White said while Trump wasn’t able to attend Nashville’s event in person, he was tuned in, and when Lewis asked White to put him on the phone, he did his part.
The celebration was in the aftermath of Lewis’ record-extending 16th career UFC knockout, which came just 35 seconds into his bout against the 6-foot-7 Teixeira. Lewis had entered as an underdog after 14 months out of the octagon.
Teixeira (8-1) had begun his career with eight first-round finishes, but it was Lewis who blitzed him out of the gate, landing a thunderous left hand to the chin that sent Teixeira tumbling to the ground, where Lewis would finish the show.
“I was acting like something was in my eye and I was waiting for him to get a little closer,” Lewis said in the post-fight news conference. “I was really trying to sell it . . . and that’s what happened. I caught him.”
It had been nearly two years since the UFC’s previous trip to Nashville, and more than 17,000 fans packed into Bridgestone Arena to see the action, generating $2.2 million at the gate, according to White.
While Lewis hails from Houston, he believes the Nashville crowd rivals any he has fought in front of, including his hometown fans.
“It’s crazy. It was too loud,” he said. “It got louder than the Houston crowd, so it was pretty cool.”
Nashville has emerged as a combat sports destination this summer, with the PFL’s World Tournament in June before bare knuckle boxing debuted in Tennessee later that month. And White believes Nashville is a location the UFC will continually look to return to after another successful show.
“We will get back to Nashville as much as possible . . . (the fans) don’t play here, man. If you start grappling for 30 seconds they go crazy,” White said. “They want to see knockdown, drag ’em out fights here and (it’s) obviously a very educated crowd. Everything about Nashville is fun, including the crowd.”
