Kevin Lee sat down for a chat with Ariel Helwano recently. ‘The Motown Phenom’ is set to make a return to the UFC Octagon next month in the welterweight division. One person Lee had wanted to fight several times in the past is the former UFC lightweight kingpin, Khabib Nurmagomedov.
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However, ‘The Eagle’ is now retired. Lee expressed his disappointment on not ever getting the opportunity. He believes the Russian retired too early. He also pointed out that the Dagestani never actually fought an elite grappler like him in the UFC.
.@MoTownPhenom admits it's "disappointing" he never fought former #UFC champ Khabib Nurmagomedov: "He didn’t really have the challenges that he should've had to really be an all-time great." Watch full interview from #theMMAhour: youtu.be/CNgHuKaQts4
“I feel like now you’re starting to see now that he’s getting a little more vocal and people are sitting back and really looking at the whole career, they’re really seeing it for what it is and not just all this hype and all these Russian bots that kind of get behind him,” said Lee to Helwani.
“It is a little disappointing that fight never happened with me and Khabib if he doesn’t come back, but I see the man’s out there playing soccer, so who knows maybe I might pick up a soccer ball or something and kick something around and we can have a little one-on-one match one of these days. Who knows,” he added.
While Lee was once touted as possible kryptonite for Nurmagomedov, ‘The Eagle’ completely dominated whoever he fought. As for Lee, his career took some roadblocks that eventually stopped him from ever facing the former lightweight champion.
Can Kevin Lee make his mark in the welterweight division?
Lee faces Daniel Rodriguez upon his return. He was set to fight Sen Brady initially. But that fight had to be called off several times. Lee had previously fought only once in the division against Rafael Dos Anjos.
Despite being 0-1 in the division, Lee believes he is a nightmare for the top welterweights. If he can live up to his potential, remains to be seen.
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