It was a brutal night for Kevin Lee in Wichita. Making his PFL debut at World Tournament 6, the former UFC standout faced reigning lightweight champ Gadzhi Rabadanov — and got dropped hard just minutes into the first round. A clean shot floored Lee, and the ref didn’t need long to wave it off. One of the fastest and most decisive knockouts of the PFL season.
The next day, Lee went online with a tough update. Jaw wired shut. No excuses. “I’m not a coward… I tried,” he posted. “But my legs aren’t the same, and I can’t absorb shots anymore.” After years of injuries, layoffs, and hard fights, the wear and tear is catching up — and Lee knows it.
That knockout was only the second of his career. The first? Way back in 2015, against Leonardo Santos. Since his highlight KO of Gregor Gillespie in 2019, things have mostly gone downhill — just two wins since, one of them over a fading Diego Sanchez.
He hasn’t said the word “retirement” yet, but you can feel it in his voice. The hunger might still be there, but the body’s not keeping up. Some fans are throwing out one last possible bout: a rematch with Tony Ferguson. Two guys past their prime, maybe looking for some closure — for themselves, or for the fans who remember what they once were.
Whatever’s next, it’s unclear if we’ll see Kevin Lee in a PFL cage again. For now, his future hangs in limbo. And that hurts more than the knockout.
