NEW YORK – One of the primary narratives from Daniel Cormier going into his UFC 230 title defense against Derrick Lewis is that his challenger has overcome a great deal in order to reach the point of fighting for UFC heavyweight gold.

Cormier (21-1 MMA, 10-1 UFC) has explained how Lewis’ (21-5 MMA, 12-3 UFC) perseverance has led him from being locked in jail several years ago to a rise up the division to the point of competing for a belt. The champion has given “The Black Beast” nothing but praise, but Lewis has historically been hesitant to discuss his background.

Although Lewis is shy about his history, he said he doesn’t have a problem with what Cormier has said, even though he doesn’t view it as necessary.

“That’s fine with me,” Lewis told MMAjunkie at UFC 230 media day. “I don’t care. I’m guessing he’s used to trying to dig up dirt on people’s backgrounds because of him and Jon Jones going back-and-forth. He felt like he needed to bring that type of stuff up for me to really try to sell this fight. But I’m guessing to me, he didn’t really have to do that.”

UFC 230 takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York. Lewis vs. Cormier headlines the pay-per-view main card following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

If Lewis had his way, though, he said he would do nothing but stay in isolation with absolutely no talk about him.

“I prefer people don’t talk about me period, at all,” Lewis said. “It would be great if they forget about me next week. I’m going to turn my phone off (after the fight).”

Lewis won’t be able to fly under the radar if he takes the belt from Cormier, though. Although “DC” is a sizable favorite to defend the gold, Lewis knows he has the ability to end any fight with one shot. He’ll be hunting for just that on fight night.

“Whenever I get tired of him hitting me and taking me down, then I’ll go ahead and try to finish the fight,” Lewis said.

To hear more from Lewis, check out the video above.

For more on UFC 230, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.