Alistair Overeem interested in fighting Derrick Lewis next, no problem with Jairzinho Rozenstruik rematch

LAS VEGAS – Alistair Overeem acknowledges he’s aged past the point most fighters are able to compete at a high level, but says he’s still got more gas left in the tank.

At UFC on ESPN+ 34, Overeem (47-18 MMA, 12-7 UFC) proved he’s still one of the best heavyweights in the world after 23 years of competition. The 40-year-old Dutchman defeated rising Brazilian Augusto Sakai (15-2-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) by fifth-round TKO in the card’s main event.

After the fight, Overeem was asked about two potential matchups for his next outing, which MMA fans and reporters on social media were already discussing as the most viable possibilities.

During the fight, top UFC heavyweight Derrick Lewis was tweeting, saying he thought Sakai won Rounds 1 through 4. While Overeem didn’t take Lewis’ comment seriously, he said he’d be happy to fight “The Black Beast” next.

“Definitely (I’d be interested),” Overeem said at a post-fight news conference. “Derrick Lewis is just talking crap. My teammate Curtis (Blaydes) is going to destroy him. I’ll be happy to do that after Curtis – Curtis first.”

Another proposed matchup was a rematch against Jairzinho Rozenstruik. The two fought in December 2019, with Rozenstruik rallying to one-punch-TKO Overeem with seconds remaining in their five-round fight.

“Rozenstruik, I destroyed that man,” Overeem said. “I schooled him. In my opinion, it was a very bad decision by the ref, waiving it off with zero seconds left. I have no problem running that back. In my mind, I already beat him. It’s only on paper that he got it. He knows it, too. I have no problem running that back.”

Overeem then said he doesn’t really care who he fights next – at least at the moment. The only thing he cares about is going back to the Netherlands to see his family, following an exhaustive UFC on ESPN+ 34 training camp in Colorado.

“No preference (of opponent),” Overeem said. “You know what my preference is? Quality time with my girls. I miss them. Camp is gruesome. I’m separated for eight weeks. I kind of do that on purpose to get extra hungry and extra motivated. For now, I’m going to fly back early tomorrow and spend some quality time with them. Then we’ll figure it out.”

UFC on ESPN+ 34 took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The entire event streamed on ESPN+.

Check out Alistair Overeem’s full UFC on ESPN+ 34 post-fight news conference in the video above.