Kevin Lee Issues Statement After UFC Rochester Loss
“Motown Phenom” Kevin Lee last suffered a unanimous decision loss in a rematch against Al Iaquinta in a lightweight contest back in December, after that setback Lee convinced he wouldn’t be killing himself by keep cutting weight at 155 and jumped to the higher division. Last night (Sat., May 18, 2019) “Motown Phenom” made a debut at welterweight in the main headliner of UFC On ESPN+10 against former UFC lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos. However, things didn’t go well for Lee as Dos Anjos stopped him via fourth-round submission (arm-triangle choke).
Lee opened the fight strong, landed combinations even dragged Dos Anjos to the canvas and won round one. In the second frame, Lee put some pressure early on and scored a takedown on Dos Anjos. Rafael recovered back on his feet and landed a head kick. Lee weathered the storm, but in the end, he couldn’t sustain his pace. Early in the round three Dos Anjos scored a takedown but Lee made his way out and tried to control Anjos back. Kevin tried to lock dos Anjos into a rear naked choke, but Rafael slips through. Anjos dragged Lee back to the canvas when the action returned to feet. In the fourth frame, Lee landed a low blow to Anjos, but former champ quickly shakes it off. Dos Anjos returned the favor and blasted Lee with a leg kick. In the final moments, RDA secured Lee in an arm triangle choke locked. The pressure was too much that Lee tapped out.
Following his loss, Lee took to social media and expressed his disappointment. (h/t BloodyElbow)
“I don’t know what happened out there tonight. I thought I did everything right leading up to this fight. Tried to eliminate every little distraction, everything that wasn’t good for me. I swear I felt like everything was falling into place. I was talking to me even before I walked out there, still wasn’t enough.
This sh-t, sometimes, it’ll be like the highest highs and the lowest lows. This sh-t really makes you question what you believe in. I’ve been through a lot of sh-t in my life, this really ain’t gonna be sh-t.”
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After UFC Rochester loss, Kevin Lee is now riding on two-fight losing skid and overall 17-5.
