Former UFC light-weight title challenger Kevin Lee talks about his return to MMA.
The “Motown Genius” famously retired from combating in July 2023 after struggling a first-round submission loss to Rinat Fakhreddinov. Only one struggle into his second stint within the UFC, Kevin Lee has determined to hold up his gloves for good. Nonetheless, like many retirement bouts in MMA, this one did not stick. Just some months after retiring, Lee introduced his plans to return.
Nonetheless, after saying his retirement, he seems to have turn out to be a free agent. Kevin Lee shortly expressed curiosity in a 3rd stint within the UFC, even providing to compete on the Dana White Contender Sequence. That present is primarily reserved for rising younger expertise, however the 32-year-old will compete there if wanted.
Nonetheless, the previous UFC title challenger’s supply fell on deaf ears. He competed within the Lights Out Championship in September, incomes a submission victory over Thiago Oliveira. Late final 12 months, Kevin Lee was introduced as one in every of quite a few signees to the newly shaped International Struggle League promotion. Earlier right now on Ariel Helwani’s podcast, the “Motown Genius” spoke about his choice to signal.
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“I did not actually speak to anybody within the UFC apart from Sean Shelby, and he stated he wasn’t actually …Why is that? I could not let you know.”
About Kevin Lee, who’s about to have a match on Dana White’s Contender Sequence. pic.twitter.com/yfBrG0oNFX
— Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) January 7, 2025
Kevin Lee reveals UFC and Sean Shelby rejected supply to compete on Contender Sequence
Kevin Lee revealed that he spoke with UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby a few doable return. Nonetheless, the group had little curiosity in re-signing the 32-year-old former title challenger. Regardless of Lee’s willingness to wrestle on Dana White’s Contender Sequence, the promotion nonetheless handed.
“I actually need to compete, you already know?” Kevin Lee stated when requested about negotiations with the UFC. “Cash is not the largest challenge. I stated I’ll struggle for $5,000 on the Contender Sequence. I’ll struggle towards what they really feel is the perfect opponent. They are not fascinated with that. I did not, and I do not know why. To be sincere, I did not have many conversations with the UFC apart from Sean Shelby.”
he continued. “He stated he wasn’t actually fascinated with that sort of factor. Once I talked to Ali (Abdelaziz), Ali advised me all the things concerning the UFC and he stated he is not within the UFC in any respect. Why? I can not say. I have been part of a few of the greatest fights in UFC historical past, I am coming off a cope with Fox for an ESPN deal, and I really feel like he is an easy man to work with…I do not know. However I am going to examine this out subsequent time, positively.”
What do you concentrate on these feedback from Kevin Lee? Would you prefer to see the “Motown Genius” return to the UFC?
