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Kevin Lee is set to face Charles Oliveira in the main event of UFC Brasilia this March 14th. He was originally supposed to face Islam Makhachev, presumably at UFC 249, but perhaps the money of main eventing a Fight Night was more.
Either way, the Russian Lightweight Makhachev was not happy and thought that Kevin Lee chose the "easy" route out. Lee, of course, would beg to differ. He knows that Charles Oliveira is in the prime of his career. In an interview with BJPenn.com, he stated his intention to stay active and declared himself as the "uncrowned champion"
“I want to stay active and plus I feel like I’m the uncrowned champion anyway. I have to fight all these dudes anyway,” Lee said “So, I may as well stay active, get some more experience out there. This will also be a tough fight [against Oliveira], he’s in the prime of his career but I like to fight.”
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As for why he thinks he's the uncrowned champion, he justified it by saying that everyone wants to fight him, just like they do against the Champion Khabib Nurmagomedov. He also believes that he hasn't lost at Lightweight to a "man":
“I feel like all these dudes got their eye on me. I know for sure all of them got their eye on me including the guys considered top-five or close to a title shot and even Tony [Ferguson] and Khabib [Nurmagomedov],” Lee said. “They ain’t going to put my name in their mouth but they all know that I’m coming up. But, they all know that’s my title. They can continue to jockey for it but they all know eventually that’s my title and I’m coming after it. I haven’t really lost to a man at lightweight yet. I’ve lost some fights but I ain’t lost to a man yet.”
It's an interesting justification, but one that nobody will agree with. However, there's no denying that he has a renewed focus after training under Firas Zahabi in the Tri Star Gym. We didn't get to see much of his improvement at UFC 244 since he finished the then-undefeated Gregor Gillespie with a swift head kick to open the main card.
UFC Brasilia will be a big test for the Mo-Town Phenom and what lies ahead for him. Win or lose, people want to see him go up against Islam Makhachev.
