Kevin Lee (18-7) made headlines when he signed with Eagle FC after his release from the UFC. The former UFC title challenger was introduced by the promotion that’s ran by former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Lee is going to be paid in Bitcoin and he is making his Eagle FC debut on March 11th. He’s going to be competing in the new 165 pound division that Eagle FC is putting forward. It was a mystery who Lee would be facing in his debut with the promotion.
We now know that Lee will be taking on the original Ultimate Fighter winner and former UFC title challenger Diego Sanchez (30-13). The fighters announced the fight on social media and it was later confirmed by MMA Junkie.
Lee is hoping for a bounce back in Eagle FC. Back in 2017, Lee was 16-2 and he was at the very top of the lightweight division. However, he ended his tenure with the promotion going just 2-5 in his final seven fights.
After that rough stretch, the UFC decided to let him go. Eagle FC was interested right away in bringing in Lee. This March event is their first show in the US and they wanted some proven talent.
Eagle FC Fight Night
Now shifting gears to the other Eagle FC addition, Diego Sanchez. Last year was quite the year for Sanchez who was also released by the UFC. However, Sanchez was released after an odd situation involving his former trainer and the promotion.
In May, Sanchez was supposed to face Cowboy Cerrone in his UFC retirement fight. However, the promotion cancelled the fight and released Sanchez. The rest of the year was a wild ride for Sanchez. He ended up getting Covid and spent some time in the hospital.
Now, he’s feeling much better and he’s ready to get back to fighting. With that, Eagle FC expressed immediate interest in bringing him in. They wanted a good name to face off with Lee and Sanchez fits the bill.
Overall, Sanchez closed out his UFC tenure going 3-2 in his last five fights. Granted one of those wins was a DQ win where he was losing the fight. Nevertheless, he’s going to bring a lot to the table in his Eagle FC debut and I’m sure people will be watching.