Lewis told ESPN that he will have surgery on Tuesday after feeling his knee “go out on me” in a loss to Junior dos Santos at UFC Wichita on March 9. “The Black Beast” was informed approximately two weeks before the bout vs. dos Santos that he had a torn ACL, but doctors determined that the heavyweight would be able to compete.
Lewis is believed to have initially injured the knee in 2015 when Ruan Potts attempted a kneebar at UFC 184. The Houston native also tore his meniscus and MCL at that time. Lewis defeated Potts via second-round TKO in that bout and went 9-4 in the Octagon after that, losing to Daniel Cormier in a heavyweight title bout at UFC 230.
The 34-year-old hopes to be recovered in time to fight by the end of 2019.
“I was going to retire a few years ago because I didn’t want to have surgery,” Lewis told MMAjunkie.com. “I’m fixing it now because it’s too weak to stop a takedown. I want to fight by the end of the year.”