UFC interim lightweight title challenger Kevin Lee has addressed his decision to accept his next fight.
If you recall, Lee has gone on record in the past by stating in interviews that he was in line to fight fan-favorite Nate Diaz, which would mark Diaz’s return fight to the Octagon under the UFC banner.
However, that didn’t happen as he was told by UFC officials that Diaz didn’t want to come back.
This leads us to his next choice which was to fight former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez or Edson Barboza. Thus, he chose to fight Barboza.
“The Nate Diaz fight was there,” Lee (16-3 MMA, 9-3 UFC) told MMA Junkie backstage at this past Saturday’s UFC 222, which took place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. “I thought it would have been a good fight. I would have wanted to take that one. Nate’s a tough fighter, and a lot of people are real high on him. But the man doesn’t want to fight.
This fight is slated to take place at UFC Fight Night 128, which goes down on April 21, 2018, at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The main card will air on FOX Sports 1 while the preliminary card will be split broadcasted on FOX Sports 1 and the promotion’s streaming service, UFC Fight Pass.
“I’m not a bully,” he said. “If somebody doesn’t want to fight, I’m not going to bother you too much. I’m not going to talk much (expletive) about people that aren’t going to get me where I’m going.
“So I like a challenge, and Barboza was the biggest challenge out there right now. It was either Barboza or (Eddie) Alvarez. Eddie, that’s easy money. I like a challenge.”
“I want the biggest challenge, and Barboza hands down is the best striker in lightweight history,” he said. “So when I go and take him out, then I’m going to take that title, too.”
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