Derrick Lewis claims he was “tricked” into fighting Jailton Almeida in Brazil: “I didn’t want to fight here”

Derrick Lewis says he never wanted to fight in Brazil and was tricked into accepting his bout against Jailton Almeida.

Lewis stepped up on about a month’s notice to face Almeida in the main event of a Fight Night card in Sao Paulo, Brazil. ‘The Black Beast’ is going into enemy territory to face Almeida, but that wasn’t his original plan. According to Lewis, when he was offered this fight, he wasn’t told the location until after he accepted.

“There were also a couple of guys that didn’t want to fight me so we just said ‘OK, that’s fine’. Then a few weeks ago we got a call about this guy (Almeida) and I just agreed straight away,” Lewis said to FOX Sports Australia. “I didn’t know the fight was in Brazil though. It was only after accepting that they told me. I’d always said to my manager I would never fight in Brazil because of the taxes being so bad. So I got tricked into accepting this fight.”

Not only did Derrick Lewis never want to fight in Brazil, but he says had he known this event was in Sao Paulo, he wouldn’t have accepted the fight against Jailton Almeida.

“No, I wouldn’t have taken it. Not at all. I said I didn’t want to fight here and, since arriving, nothing has changed. I can’t wait to go home,” Lewis said.

Part of the reason why Derrick Lewis wasn’t interested in fighting in Brazil was due to the taxes. Lewis says by the time he pays his taxes and his coaches, he won’t be making much money at all, so he’s frustrated to be fighting in Brazil.

“It’s bad. I’m basically fighting for them (the government) right now. I’m not getting anything out of it. By the time I pay my coaches and so on, it’s not even worth it, and that’s if I don’t get pickpocketed here,” Lewis added.

Lewis enters this fight as the third-biggest underdog on the card and is coming off a KO win over Marcos Rogerio de Lima.