Marcos Rogerio de Lima is eager for a rematch with Derrick Lewis, believing he can beat him nine times out of ten, despite losing their first match in just 33 seconds at UFC 291.
Marcos Rogerio de Lima is itching for a rematch. He’s got his sights set on Derrick Lewis, the “Black Beast”. He’s confident that Lewis won’t be able to duplicate his UFC 291 performance.
Now, de Lima is up against Junior Tafa, a last-minute substitute at UFC 298. Junior stepped in for his brother Justin Tafa for the upcoming Saturday’s card. De Lima revealed this on MMA Fighting’s Trocação Franca podcast. He’s adamant about a rematch with Lewis.
He lost the first match in a mere 33 seconds back in July 2023. But de Lima is sure of one thing. He can beat Lewis nine out of ten times.
“I was in top form that night,” de Lima recalls. There was the altitude, but he’d arrived early and adapted well. He’d had a solid camp and gave it his all to win the fight. Lewis threw that knee, saving himself from a flurry of punches. De Lima was ready that night.
He views the whole thing as a learning experience. “When there’s learning, there are no losses,” he says. He’s determined to continue his journey. He’s certain they’ll cross paths again. “That fight didn’t even start,” he insists.
De Lima’s record in the UFC is impressive. He’s taken down the likes of Andrei Arlovski and Ben Rothwell during his 10-7 run. Out of those 17 opponents, he only wants a rematch with Lewis. Why? “People wanted to see that fight, and they haven’t seen it yet,” he explains.
Lewis floored him with a stunning flying knee just seconds into their match. He followed up with punches, forcing referee Dan Miragliotta to call it.
“It was a hard pill to swallow,” de Lima admits. He’d trained hard for that fight. He was injured when he accepted it, but he’d asked the UFC for it. “I didn’t even fight,” he laments.
“He’d only beat me with a lucky punch or something crazy,” he asserts. He was well-prepared for that fight.
De Lima has a plan. He’ll take on every single man the UFC throws at him until he gets his rematch with Lewis.
“The lesson here is to start a bit slower, and not let emotions take over,” Lima advises. He improves as the fight goes on. So he needs to start slow, keep his emotions in check, and then go for the fight.