Former UFC Lightweight fighter Kevin Lee has been cut by the UFC after he was suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for six months and has been fined over $16,000. Kevin Lee last fought against Daniel Rodriguez at UFC on ESPN 30. He lost the fight via decision. After the fight, the samples collected of Kevin Lee tested positive for amphetamine stemming. This resulted in him getting suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission for six months and he was also charged with a fine of $19,526. He was eligible to return to the fight game from February 28, 2022. But that return is now not going to take place as UFC has decided to release him from his contract.
Marquel Martin of CAA, who manages Kevin Lee revealed to the media that his fighter was informed by the UFC that he has been cut from the promotion. He also stated that Kevin Lee had several fights left on his UFC contract but seems like UFC had some other plans with him.
“The UFC’s decision to release Kevin is disappointing and unfortunate,” Martin wrote in a statement to MMA Junkie. “Kevin is young, talented and has fought some of the toughest guys on the UFC’s roster. I think the UFC made the wrong decision in releasing him, but we all believe there are brighter days ahead in Kevin’s career.”
Kevin Lee’s UFC career
Kevin Lee had a great start to his UFC career. The highlight of his career was when he was very close to winning the UFC interim lightweight title. Kevin Lee made his promotional debut against Al Iaquinta on February 1, 2014, at UFC 169. He lost the fight via unanimous decision. He then went on to stack up several wins before losing a fight to Leonardo Santos. He then piled up some important wins over top lightweights and got a chance to fight for the interim lightweight title against then top contender, Tony Ferguson.
The duo fought for the interim title at UFC 216. Kevin Lee was winning the fight in the early round but then started to fade away as Tony started to gain the momentum. He lost the fight via submission to Tony Ferguson in the third round of the fight. He then faced lots of ups and downs but then made a statement as he finished Gregor Gillespie via first-round KO. The fight ended after Kevin landed a devastating head kick that sent Gregor to the mat and took his consciousness away. He then lost his next fight to the future lightweight champion Charles Oliviera.
Eagle FC CEO Rizvan Magomedov just sent me this regarding Kevin Lee:
"Eagle FC is ready to give Kevin Lee a new home."
As mentioned earlier today, #EagleFC — which is @TeamKhabib promotion — will be debuting in the U.S. in January. Making a strong push for talent obviously. https://t.co/7YbIyaNgky
— Damon Martin (@DamonMartin) November 30, 2021
Eagle FC CEO Rizvan Magomedov told Damon Martin of MMAfighting.com, that they are interested in signing the former interim title challenger: “Eagle FC is ready to give Kevin Lee a new home.”
What’s your favorite Kevin Lee moment?
HIGHLIGHTS:
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