A professional MMA fighter is making a name for himself here in Central Texas.
But, when Vernon Lewis isn’t winning championship belts, he’s protecting his community.
"One of the stories that I say is, he took a fight on an 8 day notice. And during training, he fractured my wrist, and I had my wrap and pads on and even through that, his wrist was still powerful," Luis Leyva, Lewis' coach, said.
Vernon Lewis is a professional MMA fighter.
"I'm in the best part of my life as far as my fighting career," Lewis said.
But, he didn't necessarily plan to become a fighter.
"I just wanted to get in shape and lose some weight, but I ended up fighting five months after training," Lewis added.
The rest is history.
Lewis won his first amateur fight 12 years ago, and has been fighting ever since.
But that's not his only passion, Vernon is a husband, a father, and a police officer.
He spends half his time training in Waco, and the other half, in Dallas, and if there's one police officer you don’t want to mess with its Vernon Lewis.
"My coworkers know I am an MMA fighter, some of them are happy that I come on when i am at the call, they know I am able to handle the situation when it gets a little out of hand," Lewis said.
His training as an MMA fighter has certainly helped him with his career as a policeman.
"Since then I have used a lot of my techniques to make sure no one is hurt. The training that I have had over the years has really helped me and I think it has been a good asset as a police officer to be able to defend yourself on the street," Lewis added.
Vernon has a love for all that he does whether that's his career as a professional MMA fighter or a police officer, and his resume reflects that.
"I plan on to try to hold on to anything that's going to keep me grounded, keep me focused and help me as far as do what I love to do, which is you know, fight," Lewis said.
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