Kevin Lee follows through on prediction | What’s Next?

Kevin Lee follows through on prediction | What’s Next?

Kevin Lee overcame some third round adversity in the form of a well executed spinning wheel kick, compliments of Edson Barboza in last night’s UFC Fight Night 128 main event in Atlantic City.

Despite being kicked in the face and put on wobbly legs in the fights third-round, Lee was still able to score a dominant fifth-round TKO victory over Edson Barboza in last night’s main event.

Kevin battered Edson for the better part of twenty minutes, arguably manhandling the Brazilian in a more devastating fashion than current lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov was able to at UFC 219.

Lee’s statement was received loud and clear, not by his typical “Motown Phenom” swagger, but by the outright skills and will that he enforced to dominate one of the UFC’s best strikers ranking 2nd in KO’s and Knockdowns in the division.

Here’s what Lee had to say in his post-fight press conference last night.

Lee was not only composed but also showed maturity, which comes as little surprise with the 25-years-old fighter already having 13 UFC fights under his belt.  But, it was Lee’s night as he showed that his stand-up game was strong enough to hang with what most analysts feel is one of the best strikers in the division and possibly the organization.

The bigger question that needs to be answered is who deserves to get a shot at the current champ Khabib Nurmagomedov. Dustin Poirier picked up a statement win against Justin Gaethje earlier this month.

Meanwhile, Tony Ferguson was recently stripped of his Interim Lightweight Championship duties, this he failed to make the walk at UFC 223 due to a freak accident. “El Cucuy” is now on the mend post-surgery and hopes to final settle the score with “The Eagle” when he is healthy.

Then there is always former division champion Conor McGregor, whose availability remains unknown due to pending legal issues.

So, with a dominating performance by Kevin Lee, who should be next for Khabib Time?

* this post first appeared in bjpenn.com 4/21/2018”