Derrick Lewis says UFC 230 paycheck will be more than last three fights combined

At long last, UFC 230 has a main event. That’s thanks to the willingness of UFC heavyweight champ Daniel Cormier and heavyweight contender Derick Lewis to step in an battle in the card’s main event on very short notice.

While Daniel Cormier and Derrick Lewis will not have a lot of time to prepare for their UFC 230 main event title fight, it sounds like the UFC has made it worth their while.

Speaking to the media this week, Derrick Lewis said that he expects to be be paid more at UFC 230 than he has for his 2018 battles with Alexander Volkov, Francis Ngannou and Marcin Tybura combined.

“It’s probably more than I made this year already,” he said.

This massive payday, as you can probably imagine, has motivated Derrick Lewis to take his training to the next level.

“Not just the title on the line, whenever I saw my contract and see the zeroes, I was like, ‘OK, I can start training now,’” he said. “Before, like I told y’all before, I don’t stay in the gym like everyone else does, my opponents. It’s pretty obvious, after the fight I’m laying all over the floor, I’m tired. Ready to go sit my ass down somewhere.”

“But this fight right here, I’ve really been training all day long. Drinking more water than I need to be drinking. Really taking it more serious. There’s not gonna be no excuses for myself — win, lose or draw.”

At the end of the day, Derrick Lewis feels that this heavyweight title shot, and the payday that’s coming with it, was just too good an opportunity to pass up.

“It’s just one that I can’t pass up, because I know there’s a lot of guys in this division that probably deserve a shot more than I’m getting,” Lewis said. “I probably don’t deserve a shot more than Stipe [Miocic], who should have got the shot. But ain’t no telling the next time I’m gonna get the opportunity, so I gotta jump on it anyways.”

How much do you think Derrick Lewis will pocket for UFC 230?

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 10/19/2018.