'One of us is going to have to win, one of us is going to have to leave' - Kevin Lee calls out Tony Ferguson

In an interview with MMA Junkie, Kevin Lee was asked what kind of an opponent he was looking for when he returns. Lee replied that he wants to fight Tony Ferguson. Lee had two surgeries in 2020 after tearing both his left and right ACL. The 28-year-old has been doing physical therapy in his hometown of Las Vegas and is almost fully fit to return to fighting.

In the interview, Lee said:

I want to fight Tony Ferguson, that fight makes a whole lot of sense from all angles. I don't really see anybody else out there for him to fight and it will put us back where we should be. A fight between me and him is going to show that one of us is going to have to win and one of us is going to have to leave.

Lee went on to say that he thinks Ferguson is going to dig deep for the next fight and that he wants to be the one to get Ferguson at his best.

Me and @TonyFergusonXT gonna run it back https://t.co/QFsLxk0ikw

— Kevin MTP Lee (@MoTownPhenom) February 6, 2021

Ferguson, who recently celebrated his 37th birthday, has not responded to the call out yet. He is coming off back-to-back loses to Justin Gaethje by TKO and Charles Oliveira by unanimous decision.

Ferguson vs Lee at UFC 216

In October 2017, Tony Ferguson fought Kevin Lee for the interim UFC lightweight title. A 33-year-old Ferguson beat Lee via submission in the UFC 216 main event.

Both fighters landed a clean and heavy punches early in the fight. Each scored a knockdown and experienced a taste of their opponent's power. Lee, who was 25 at the time, managed to control the fight from the ground during round one and threw some heavy strikes.

In round two, Ferguson managed to find his rhythm. While Lee began to slow down, Ferguson was able to slip in a few accurate strikes throughout the frame.

Lee opened round three with a takedown but was not able to accomplish much. He managed to hold down Ferguson for the first minute of the round before Ferguson was able to get back to his feet. Lee somehow got the fight to the ground once again but nearly finished by an armbar.

Noticing how exhausted Lee was, Ferguson quickly went after a triangle choke and submitted Lee in the third round, going on to win the interim lightweight title.