Derrick Lewis Was Raised By His Single Parent, Along With Six Other Siblings

Derrick was actually sentenced to Prison for five years, quite before he started his MMA career.

July 27, 2026

This article was last updated by Anish on July 23, 2026

Derrick Lewis, the American MMA fighter, was raised by his single mother along with his six other Siblings in New Orleans, Louisiana.

The Heavyweight MMA fighter is regarded for his knockout power, post-match celebrations, and . He debuted in UFC just over ten years ago against Jack May.

Even though Derrick “The Black Beast” Lewis’ life is shaping up to be quite good, having recently KO’ed Tallison Teixeira at UFC Nashville, which extended his record to 29-12-0 and secured the post for most KO’s (16), this wasn’t always the case for him.

Derrick’s Mother Was In An Abusive Relationship With His Stepfather

The Heavyweight grew up in a relatively poor household. Also, his mother was in an abusive relationship with his stepfather. He has said;

“I have a lot of anger built up in me from my childhood. My wife and kids are the only ones who give me peace in this world.Since I was probably eight years old, just about every day until I was 14 or 15, my mom and my stepdad would roll around in the living room fighting. Just watching my mom getting abused everyday and not being strong enough to pull my stepdad off of her. It was real tough. That’s what I think about on fight night, not being strong enough or good enough to get my stepfather off of my mom and just watching them fight for damn near hours.

Probably due to the domestic violence, Derrick Lewis, along with his six siblings and mother, moved to Houston, Texas, in 1998.

Unfortunately, due to legal troubles, he went to jail in 2005, just a couple of weeks after graduating from high school.

He served a total of three and a half years in jail, after fighting back at a man, reportedly a member of Ku Klux Klan, and breaking his eye.

Once he was released, he initially worked as a tow truck driver before training with legendary Boxing Champion George Foreman in August 2008.

Eventually, Derrick Lewis went to try his luck and jumped into MMA, debuting on April 9, 2010, and that too with a knockout. He has then been on a remarkable journey in the same field.

Derrick currently lives in Cypress, Texas, with his . April was the long-term girlfriend of the UFC fighter before getting married. They were first introduced to each other by Derrick’s cousin Lemar. April said;

“So we initially talked on the phone. When I first talked to Derrick on the phone, he was just telling me he was really black. (laughs.) The next day he just showed up on my door, I didn’t tell him where I lived. So yeah.”

The couple got married back on June 17, 2017, in Honolulu, Hawaii, and have three children together.

In Case You Didn’t Know

• Derrick Lewis secured his fastest UFC knockout against Tallison Teixeira in just 35 seconds.
• The HeavyWeight fighter also rescued over a hundred people during Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
• He has played a total of 42 Professional MMA matches. His last loss came against Jailton Almeida on November 4, 2026.

• Check other Articles on

Anish Koirala has loved sports since he was a kid. He grew up playing basketball and soccer, and that passion stayed with him over the years. Today, Anish works as a writer and editor, sharing his knowledge and love for the game through articles and stories. He uses his playing experience to make his writing clear, thoughtful, and fun to read.

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