Former UFC interim lightweight title challenger Kevin Lee went toe-to-toe with tough division contender Edson Barboza in the main event of UFC Fight Night 128. “The Motown Phenom” put on a dominant performance over his opponent, ultimately earning a fifth round TKO via doctor stoppage.
Speaking on The MMA Hour, Kevin Lee revealed that he allegedly eased off Barboza at one point during the fight.
“He took a whooping, and I kinda took it a little bit easy on him too after that. It was like during the second round, I could see he was taking a whooping and I didn’t want to keep hitting that man like that. He’s a nice guy, I wish him nothing but the best.
“Yeah, he’s taken a whooping these last few fights, but he’s going to come back and he’s going to knock some dudes clean out. I mean, Barboza’s still one of the toughest guys in this division, hands down. I think if anything, this is just going to make him tougher.”
“I mean, he kicked the sh-t outta me, I ain’t gonna lie. Barboza’s explosive. I was setting up my knockout shot and I took my focus off of him for a half-a-second, and at this level, especially with a guy like that — that’s been one of the things that my coaches have been saying to me for a long time, and that’s one of the things that I even had to keep reminding myself of during the actual fight.”
“A reporter asked me, he was like, ‘It sounded like you were in there talking.’ I wasn’t talking to Barboza, I was talking to myself,” he continued. “I was reminding myself of those things, to stay sharp and not get caught with something. But, for that split-second, I looked away and yeah, he rang me.”
