In a surprise to no one, Kevin Lee is quite unhappy about being cut by the UFC on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, many in the MMA community were surprised by the news of Lee (18-7) being released by the UFC. Ending an 18-fight run in the promotion. Losing four of his last five fights surely was not going to earn him a title opportunity, but at only 29-years-old, and with many productive years in front of him, the news stunned fans, fighters, and media.
Beyond the shock, Lee also views the decision by his long-time employer to be lacking respect for what “The Motown Phenom” did in the promotion during his seven-year tenure.
Kevin Lee feels ‘disrespect’ in Tuesday UFC release
“That’s the main thing that kind of pisses me off about this. When we in the UFC, that’s really all you’re fighting for, is your respect,” Lee said on a Wednesday edition of The MMA Hour. “People respect you for being a UFC fighter. When they hear the name, they automatically give you some kind of respect. We not doing it really for the money.
“It ain’t a whole lot of fame in this sh*t. It’s like, Okay, I’ve done all this sh*t for y’all. I’ve put my body on the line just to end up with an alcohol problem and some tax problems. And at the end of the day, you take my respect away from me, too? It’s like, Okay, well then, sh*t.”
Lee alleged his release from the MMA world leader was about more than just his win-loss record and his skills as a fighter. Saying, “I think there was more politics and stuff going on behind the scenes, and I got caught in the middle of that.” It’s left a very bad taste for the Detroit native and he is not interested in reconciliation with the promotion down the road.
“Yeah, ‘You can come back at some point.’ Honestly, I don’t really want to,” Lee said. “Why would I want to work with somebody who’s gonna disrespect me like that? It’s crazy. That’s the only thing we fight for in this game.”
The former lightweight title challenger, and welterweight veteran, has always had a great deal of talent, and there will be many interested suitors from around the combat sports realm. While he is excited for the opportunities ahead outside the Octagon, where he shows up next will all come down to the number of zeroes on the contract offer. Because “people respect money more than anything.”
“My only goal, and objective right now is to show that they just made one of the worst mistakes that they did. And, you know, I’ll be a millionaire within a year or so,” he said. … “I’m a prizefighter. So at the end of the day, I’m gonna go to whoever pays me the most,” Lee said.
“I’m excited to get in there in a different arena, too. That should be interesting. That should be fun. I kind of needed a restart anyway. That part should be fun. Of course, I’m excited for the money,” Lee continued. “People respect money more than anything apparently because, at the end of the day, they’re gonna disrespect you anyway, so you might as well get the money. Then they can’t say sh*t about it.”
Lee finished with an 11-7 record in the UFC. Having scored victories over notable names like Jake Matthews, Michael Chiesa, and Edson Barboza. However, coming up short in some of his most important matches may be the lasting memory of his UFC run for many. In pivotal matchups against Tony Ferguson, Rafael dos Anjos, and Al Iaquinta twice, he was unable to secure trajectory-changing wins.
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