Tai Tuivasa believes Derrick Lewis passed him the torch after he scored a vicious second-round KO win at UFC 271 in Houston, Texas.
Tuivasa and Lewis both landed heavy shots and “The Black Beast” appeared to be on his way to ending the fight in the first round as he had “Bam Bam” down and landed heavy shots. Yet, Tuivasa survived, and in the second round, Tuivasa landed a violent elbow that knocked Lewis out cold.
“I thought I did well,” he said at the UFC 271 post-fight press conference. “Come to Houston, I got a few boos at the start, but turned them into cheers… “He’s had his time and I think this is the passing of the torch. If I keep up doing what I’m doing, and keep focusing on what I need to focus on, I will one day take over.”
With the KO win over Lewis, Tai Tuivasa will now likely enter the top-five at heavyweight and could be a win away from a title shot. However, for the fan favorite, he admits he doesn’t watch fighting so he doesn’t know who is in the top-five and who he may fight next.
“I don’t even know the f*ck’s in the top five,” he said. “I don’t even watch fighting, bro. I heard there’s the Stipe’s and the Ciryl Gane’s and all that and everyone up there.”
Tuivasa is on a five-fight winning streak and is knocking on the door of title contention. However, he says he doesn’t care about flying under the radar and just being known as a guy that knocks people out and drinks beer.
“I don’t mind being the guy who drinks piss out of shoes and this and that,” Tuivasa said. “I suppose everyone just focused on this and that, but at the end of the day, I’m knocking the best in the world out.”
