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OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – JUNE 25: Kevin Lee celebrates after his submission victory over Michael Chiesa in their lightweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on June 25, 2017 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by Brandon Magnus/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
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OKLAHOMA CITY, OK – JUNE 25: Kevin Lee celebrates after his submission victory over Michael Chiesa in their lightweight bout during the UFC Fight Night event at the Chesapeake Energy Arena on June 25, 2017 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (Photo by Brandon Magnus/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
Kevin Lee is finally set to make his return to the UFC Octagon, this time in the 170 lbs division. Charles Oliveira submitted ‘The Motown Phenom’ in his last fight. After multiple cancelations of a possible clash with Sean Brady, Lee will take on D-Rod upon his return.
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This will be Lee’s second fight at the welterweight division. In his previous outing at 170, Rafael Dos Anjos beat him. However, Lee sees too many holes in the games of current welterweight contenders. Hence, he is confident that he fits into the top 5 of the division.
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK – NOVEMBER 02: Kevin Lee celebrates his KO victory over Gregor Gillespie in their lightweight bout during the UFC 244 event at Madison Square Garden on November 02, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
“I feel like I’m already top five, so this is going to be one of those fights to show the difference in what I’ve got,” said Lee in a recent chat with Ariel Helwani.
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“I’ve been watching the whole time and I see nobody around here. I see nobody that can bring what I bring to the table. I see nobody that’s got the skills that I’ve got, and can do everything in a complete package. I don’t see none of them, so yeah, it’s me,” he added.
Lee, touted as one of the brightest prospects during the early days of his UFC career, even fought for the interim lightweight championship. But he has been very inconsistent in recent times inside the Octagon.
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Lee, despite lauding Usman as a great champion, believes ‘The Nigerian Nightmare‘ hasn’t yet faced a worthy challenge. “Is a great champ. He’s a great champ, I’ll give it to him. But I don’t think he’s really been challenged by anybody, and I’m here to give him that challenge,” Lee explained.
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ROCHESTER, NY – MAY 18: Kevin Lee stands in the ring before a welterweight bout against Rafael Dos Anjos at Blue Cross Arena on May 18, 2019 in Rochester, New York. Dos Anjos defeats Lee by submission during the third round. (Photo by Brett Carlsen/Getty Images)
He also believes that Covington will put up a good fight against the champion, Usman. Furthermore, while ‘The Motown Phenom’ acknowledged Leon Edwards’ fighting skills, Lee believes ‘Rocky’ isn’t a complete package.
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Hence, Lee seems to be more than confident that he will be a star of the 170lbs division. Given his comments, his first test back at welterweight will be intriguing to watch.
