Fight fire with fire.
That seems to be the strategy for Waldo Cortes-Acosta ahead of the biggest fight of his career.
Cortes-Acosta (16-2 MMA, 9-2 UFC), who was one of the biggest breakout fighters of 2025, will look to go toe to toe with the man that holds the record for the most knockouts in UFC history, Derrick Lewis. The two giants are set to meet on the main card of UFC 324 on Jan. 24 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
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Although throwing down with Lewis might seem ill-advised for some, Cortes-Acosta’s head coach, Javier Torres, assures that’s the path to victory.
“Derrick Lewis has trouble when you don’t give him respect or when you pressure him,” Torres told MMA Junkie in Spanish. “Look at the fight against Sergei Pavlovich. We’re going to work the pressure and be the one pressing. You still need to be careful, but Derrick Lewis experiences difficulty when you don’t respect him and you stand in front of him. That’s when you break him. Waldo is going to do that.”
Many have tried to beat Lewis, and most have failed. However, Reyes feels confident his pupil has the skill set needed to execute that type of game plan against the former UFC title challenger.
“Waldo has very good IQ and very good head movement,” Torres said. “He’s not going to eat a Derrick Lewis shot flush. And even if we did eat it flush, Waldo has been hit hard in many fights – you’ve seen the clip of Robelis (Despaigne) landing that kick on his chin and Waldo shaking it off – and we’ve realized he’s got a good chin. In his recent sparring and recent fights, his head movement and IQ are great. He’s always aware. He never eats a shot clean. We’ve worked on that a ton.”
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The knockout threat isn’t the only thing Reyes is preparing Cortes-Acosta for at UFC 324. At the pre-fight press conference last month, Lewis said, ‘I’m going to poke him in the eye or hit him in the nuts’ given the lack of point deductions in MMA due to illegal strikes. Lewis may or may not be kidding, but either way, Torres is also preparing for any foul play.
“We’re also not going to fall in his games,” Torres said. “The nut shots, Derrick Lewis said he was going to do it. I’m telling you, we’re hitting pads, and I throw a strike at his balls or go to eye poke him so he can recognize it. Derrick Lewis said it at the press conference. ‘I don’t care. If I need to eye poke him or hit him in the balls, I will.’ So I’m going for the victory. I’m winning no matter what.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 324: Waldo Cortes-Acosta has surprise in store for Derrick Lewis
