Derrick Lewis wants a hometown first-round knockout at UFC 247

HOUSTON – Derrick Lewis is undefeated in his home state of Texas, and he plans on keeping it that way.

Lewis (22-7 MMA, 13-5 UFC) faces Ilir Latifi this Saturday at UFC 247 and is looking to put on a show for his hometown fans.

“I’m going to look for the knockout in the first round,” Lewis said at the UFC 247 athlete panel held Wednesday. “I have to put on for Houston. We’ve been through a lot with the flooding and all that, so I got to come in swinging and banging in the first round.”

Lewis has made it a habit of scoring late finishes, with two of his recent “Performance of the Night” comeback knockouts over Marcin Tybura and Alexander Volkov coming late in the third round.

“Just let the fight unfold,” Lewis said. “I’m going to fight the same like I do any other fight. Everybody know if I’m not going to get him out of there in the first round, I get him out of there in the last two seconds of the fight.”

Latifi (14-7 MMA, 7-5 UFC)  is moving up from light heavyweight and will pose an interesting short and stocky frame for the division.

But it’s all the same for Lewis.

“He’s a little guy. Just about everybody in the division is up and down, so it don’t matter,” Lewis said. “We all the same size when we lay down, so I’m pretty sure he’s going to try and take me down.”

UFC 247 takes place Saturday at Toyota Center. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.