Lerone Murphy does not dwell on the past and is ready to move on to his next challenge. Last week, top-ranked contender Movsar Evloev outclassed the British fighter in a controversial five-round battle as Murphy missed out on the featherweight title shot. Some argued that the #3-ranked featherweight had done enough to win, while others believed Evloev deserved it. The majority decision only intensified the post-fight debate. Despite his disappointment with the judges’ scorecards, Murphy has already set his sights on challenging Diego Lopes, who is set to fight at the UFC White House event.

Following Murphy’s loss, his past rival and former featherweight title challenger, Diego Lopes, was the first to strike, taunting Murphy on social media. “Diego Lopes is the same as me,” taunted Lerone Murphy back in January, a sharp remark aimed at the Mexican ahead of his title fight against Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 325. At the time, ‘The Miracle’ argued that the UFC had given Lopes a title shot simply to explore the Mexican market. However, now that Murphy has suffered the first loss of his career, Diego Lopes fired back.

“No, Lerone, we are not the same,” Diego Lopes wrote on X. “Never do that again.”

Nevertheless, Lerone Murphy did not let the opportunity slip and issued a fiery callout.

“I didn’t lay on my back in guard for three rounds, bro. Let’s fight next,” he responded to Lopes.

Lerone Murphy clearly roasted Lopes’s lackluster performance against Alexander Volkanovski in the rematch at UFC 325 last month in Sydney. Fans had expected a brawl, similar to Volkanovski and Lopes’ first encounter at UFC 314 last year, where both fighters gave everything to win. However, the rematch played out more tactically, which many labeled “boring.”

Diego Lopes now sits at 1-2 in his last two outings. He has set his sights on the upcoming UFC White House event, also billed as UFC Freedom 250, where he will face Albuquerque star Steve Garcia. The event will be held at the White House lawns and will celebrate America’s 250th year of independence, which also coincides with Donald Trump’s 80th birthday.

With that said, both Lopes and Murphy have already fought Movsar Evloev. In 2022 at UFC 288, Diego Lopes stepped in on short notice and gave a hell of a run against Evloev. Still, Evloev controlled the fight with his wrestling and ultimately won, though Lopes’ performance won fans’ hearts.

Last week at UFC London, Lerone Murphy looked sharp against Evloev. However, Evloev saved his cardio for the later rounds. He even committed a foul by hitting two low blows, which led to a point deduction. Many expected a draw or even the Brit win, but the judges raised Evloev’s hand.

Although Murphy initially accepted the defeat, ‘The Miracle’ changed his tune after rewatching the fight. Now, let’s hear from him.

Murphy changes perspective on controversial Evloev defeat

Lerone Murphy’s latest loss at UFC London dashed not only his dream of becoming champion but also blemished his previously undefeated record. What made it worse was that it happened in front of his home crowd in London, where he grew up. Moreover, Russian star Evloev defeated him in a close contest. Two judges scored the fight 48-46 for Evloev, while the third scored it 47-47 as a draw. Many fans inside the O2 Arena, as well as those watching on Paramount+, argued that the Brit deserved the win.

The debate quickly spread online, so Lerone Murphy weighed in himself, which ultimately led him to change his mind about the fight, even while he remained respectful toward Evloev.

“Just watched the fight back,” he wrote on X, followed by the laughing/sweating emoji. “Congrats to Evloev either way.”

After fans strongly reacted to the judges’ scorecards from the UFC London main event, do you think the fight should have been ruled a draw instead of a win for Movsar Evloev? Let us know your thoughts below.