| |
 |
|
THE LEWIS ARMY: A STORM
FROM THE NORTH
Jeff Chan, MFC Staff
Are Dwayne Lewis and Company Taking Over the MFC?
Anyone who’s driven the 435 kms from Fort McMurray, Alberta to
Edmonton
understands that it isn’t the kind of thing you do just for a fun
night out. So
how is it that Fort McMurray-based MMA fighter Dwayne Lewis can come
down to
fight in the Maximum Fighting Championship - in the dead of a
northern Canadian
winter - and be followed by a legion of almost 300 fans?
Easily recognizable as a deafeningly loud sea of black “Team Lewis”
t-shirts
taking up most, if not all, of the floor seats at any MFC event, the
grassroots
phenomenon known as the Lewis Army is the type of thing that makes
the Maximum
Fighting Championship so special. How does something like this
start?
Ask Sandy Bowman, Dwayne’s manager and the owner of Bowman’s Mixed
Martial Arts.
Realizing Dwayne’s popularity early on, Bowman was the one who came
up with the
“Team Lewis” t-shirts and started providing them to fans who bought
MFC tickets
from Bowman’s MMA. An instant hit with Fort McMurray’s MMA fans, the
shirts
caught the eye of Kevin from Shah-K-Mate Clothing, who saw them
while watching
an MFC event on HDNet. Shah-K-Mate now makes special designs in very
limited
runs for each of Dwayne’s fights. The effect is staggering. Imagine
being a
hometown fighter and having your own crowd outnumbered by
out-of-towners all
wearing the same shirt!
Of course it helps that Dwayne Lewis (11-4-0, 7 KOs, 3 subs) is an
exciting
fighter. “I’m comfortable standing up and throwing bombs”, says
Lewis when
asked about his fighting style. And it shows in the results. Nine of
his eleven
wins ended in the first round. Of his 15 fights, only five have gone
into the
second round.
This approach can come at a price though. Fighting Aron Lofton at
MFC 17:
Hostile Takeover, Lewis suffered a devastating knockout in the
opening seconds
of the first round. But since then he’s stormed back with a
seven-fight winning
streak, knocking out MMA legend Marvin “The Beastman” Easton in the
process.
Heavy hands aren’t Dwayne’s only weapon though. Those writing Lewis
off as a
ferocious striker who’s just been lucky enough to have avoided
fights with
accomplished grapplers will be surprised to hear that not only is he
a purple
belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Rodrigo Munduruca, but also has a
brown belt
from Miletich Fighting Systems. Yes, Dwayne Lewis is a complete
fighter.
But is a winning record enough to cultivate a fan base of Lewis Army
proportions? There must be something else at work. Sandy Bowman
attributes much
of Dwayne’s popularity to a friendly nature that shows up regularly
at the gym.
“If Dwayne sees someone doing something incorrectly, whether it’s a
housewife
hitting the bag or a local kid doing padwork, he’ll stop what he’s
doing to
give them a hand.”
Talking to Lewis, one thing becomes clear right away - he is
definitely not the
stereotypical MMA fighter so often demonized in the media. He’s
humble, down to
earth, friendly, and, married with three kids, is a self-professed
“family
man”. He also reiterates Bowman’s sentiment about his giving nature
by adding,
“I love teaching more than fighting”.
When asked about his success in MMA, Lewis is quick to deflect
praise away from
himself and towards his core training team of Mike Ciesnolevicz,
Sandy Bowman,
Matt Jelly, and Rodrigo Munduruca. He also credits MFC CEO Mark
Pavelich, who
he says, “has been giving me support since I was basically a bum”.
What was
that we said about being humble?
So what’s in the future for Dwayne and the Lewis Army? “Just keep
steaming
forward”, Dwayne says. Want to see what all the fuss is about? Then
come to MFC
25: Vindication on Friday, May 7 at the Northlands Expo Centre in
Edmonton,
Alberta and watch Dwayne Lewis try to extend his winning streak to
eight when
he squares off against Mike Nickels. If you still don’t think it was
worth the
drive, tell that to the Lewis Army. Just be sure that you’re ready
to duck.
|
