Las Vegas, NV – At first he thought it was a prank, but UFC welterweight Rinat Fakhretdinov is glad to be facing Kevin Lee at UFC Vegas 76 on Saturday night.
“The first thought I had was ‘is this a prank?’ No way, Kevin Lee? They’re going to call me and they’re going to be like ‘no you get a different opponent’,” Fakhretdinov told reporters through a translator on Wednesday.
“But then I realized it was for real and I really was happy about it.”
For Fakhretdinov the name value that Lee brings to a fight makes this one of the biggest fights of his career.
“He’s got a big name, he’s a former title challenger, he’s got a lot of media following. He’s an important fighter so I was really happy to fight with him, and I’m excited to stand and bang with him,” he said.
Lee’s career has taken a bit of a downturn as he’s lost three of his last five bouts, but Fakhretdinov is not worried at all about his opponent’s record.
“I’m not worried about the fact that his record has losses. We have many champions in different parts of MMA that have had losses before. I’m not thinking that, because he has losses, he’s a weaker fighter or worse fighter,” he said.
“It all depends on preparation. How much time he’s been preparing, how serious they take this fight, and what kind of Kevin Lee is going to come out.”
A win over Lee may be the bridge to not only ranked opponents, but possible title contention sooner than later.
“I think it really depends on what kind of win it’s going to be. If it’s going to be a submission, if it’s going to be a knockout, if it’s going to be a quick one,” said Fakhretdinov.
“I think that at least I’m going to be put in the top 20 after this win. I’m going to ask for a fight in Abu Dhabi. Hopefully in Abu Dhabi I’ll be able to fight somebody in top 15. My goal this year is to be in top 15.”
Rinat Fakhretdinov takes on Kevin Lee at UFC Vegas 76 from the UFC APEX on Saturday night.
