Kevin Lee issues response to teary-eyed Sean Strickland after fight challenge

The saga between UFC middleweight contender Sean Strickland and Kevin Lee continues.

‘Tarzan’ last defeated Abus Magomedov earlier this month in the main event of UFC Vegas 76. Meanwhile, ‘The Motown Phenom’ made his return on the undercard, suffering a first-round submission loss to Rinat Fakhretdinov. Following the defeat, Kevin Lee announced his retirement.

For his part, Sean Strickland later took aim at the former title challenger, but especially his brother. On a recent edition of his podcast, the middleweight slammed Keith Lee. Kevin Lee’s younger brother and former Bellator veteran, he’s become a massive TikTok star over the last few years.

However, Sean Strickland accused Kevin Lee’s brother of being racist towards white people in a previous conversation. To his credit, the TikTok star later hit back at those comments, and had Chris Curtis confirm that he never said anything of the sort. That being said, the middleweight contender wasn’t really impressed with the situation.

On X, Sean Strickland recently called Kevin Lee to “defend” his brother’s honor. In the tweet challenging the former welterweight, he added that he would love to not have any rules for a potential fight. He ended the post by thanking Keith Lee, with the middleweight having tears in his eyes.

RELATED: KEITH LEE SLAMS SEAN STRICKLAND AFTER RACISM ACCUSATION: “STANDING UP FOR WHAT’S TRUE”

There is a small chance that Kevin lee might come to Vegas next week to defend his brothers honor….

No rules.. no time limit… No criminal prosecution… I don't normally feel this level of joy… Man I haven't cried in years but it's happening……. thank you keith lee pic.twitter.com/ul35o2GgSF

— Sean Strickland (@SStricklandMMA) July 26, 2023

However, don’t expect Kevin Lee to be fighting Sean Strickland anytime soon. On social media, the former title challenger rejected the challenge, stating that he had something else to do. Furthermore, the retired fighter added that comments about his former coach, Dewey Cooper, led him to reject the fight.

Not gonna make it. Hate to disappoint but I got something else to do. What you said about Dewey is what got me. Keith told me not to, so keep the hate https://t.co/Qtwml5rFAY

— Kevin Lee MTP (@MoTownPhenom) July 27, 2023

Given Kevin Lee’s recent retirement, the decline isn’t exactly shocking. However, it’s clear that the situation between the two brothers and Sean Strickland likely isn’t over.

What do you make of this situation? Would you like to see Sean Strickland vs. Kevin Lee?