UFC announces Derrick Lewis vs. Rodrigo Nascimento as St. Louis event headliner

The UFC has tabbed a couple of big men to headline the promotion’s return to St. Louis.

On Saturday, the UFC announced that Derrick Lewis vs. Rodrigo Nascimento will serve as the main event for UFC Fight Night on May 11 at Enterprise Center. The event marks the UFC’s first in St. Louis since Jan. 14, 2018.

Lewis (27-12 MMA, 18-10 UFC) vs. Nascimento (11-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) is a matchup of two top-15 heavyweights headed in different directions.

Lewis, 39, has been on a downswing ever since his interim title-fight loss to Ciryl Gane in August 2021 at UFC 265. Including that result, Lewis is 2-5 since then. He most recently lost a five-round unanimous decision to Jailton Almeida last November.

Nascimento, 31, hasn’t been very active, competing just five times since joining the UFC in 2020, but he’s on a three-fight winning streak. He defeated Tanner Boser and Ilir Latifi by split decision before most recently taking a unanimous decision from Don’Tale Mayes last November.

With the addition, below is the updated lineup for UFC St. Louis:

• Derrick Lewis vs. Rodrigo Nascimento
• Waldo Cortes-Acosta vs. Robelis Despaigne
• Alex Caceres vs. Sean Woodson