Former UFC lightweight star Kevin Lee makes his PFL debut this Friday, taking on Gadzhi Rabadanov in the main event of PFL Wichita.
For Lee (20-8), who is moving past the failure of the fledgling GFL, it’s a chance to get back in the spotlight, against one of the top names in the division. Rabadanov won the PFL’s 2024 lightweight season, and is looking to repeat as champ in the new-look World Tournament. “The Motown Phenom” meanwhile steps in to replace
Lee however sees meaning in the fact that it’s been roughly a decade since he fought his first big Russian prospect. “It was 10 years ago that I fought my first Russian, Magomed Mustafaev,” noted Lee during Wednesday’s PFL Wichita media day. “People don’t remember but that guy was on a super tear, and he was targeted to be the next big Russian up. I fought him in Belfast, Ireland and Dan Hardy was actually commentating it, and I think that was my coming out party. And that was the first time where I really targeted Team Khabib, and that was 2015.”
It was actually 2016, but close enough – Lee earned a Performance of the Night bonus under the UFC banner that night. “It’s 2025 now, and I finally, finally get a chance to prove myself against these guys. And I go against one of their top guys, one of their guys that’s been in their stable for a long time. And once I’m able to prove against him, then I wasn’t just talk for all these years.”
Lee acknowledged that Khabib Nurmagomedov’s camp, which includes Rabadanov, “do some good stuff, but they’re not unbeatable. They’re men, they bleed, and as soon as he feels my power, as soon as he feels my presence, as soon as he feels my hunger, I think he’ll start to wilt. They’re really good at being bullies, but I ain’t never been bullied in my life. Not once.”
Later, Lee would become emotional talking about his late coach, Robert Follis, who took his own life in 2017.
“He really believed in me. And he really believed that I could be a world champion. I was this close to getting there, and I feel like I let him down,” admitted Lee. “Those are the memories that I got to carry on, that I got to keep going through with. And I’ve got to correct and right those wrongs before I’m able to hang this up. You ain’t see me lay down my gloves in the octagon yet. Once you see that time, then you’re gonna see and you’re gonna know that I was a world champion, even before they put the belt on me.”
It’s clear Lee is carrying on to honor Follis, while now training at KillCliff FC alongside the likes of Robbie Lawler. Should he get the win this Friday, he’ll be one step closer to that championship goal.
Watch the full PFL Wichita media day appearance by Kevin Lee above.
