UFC Rochester video recap: Rafael Dos Anjos upsets Kevin Lee’s welterweight debut with submission win

Bloodyelbow.com

Although starting the fight well, Kevin Lee’s welterweight debut at UFC Rochester didn’t go as planned as Rafael Dos Anjos submitted “The Motown Phenom” in round four.

What was the high point of the fight?

Both men started the fight quickly exchanging hard body kicks and trading on the feet before Lee looked to smother Dos Anjos against the cage. It looked like Lee began to slow down come the third round, and ‘RDA’ started to do well landing shots on the break once he got his back off the fence.

Dos Anjos buckled Lee’s legs with a big leg kick at the beginning of round four. Lee attempted a takedown but Dos Anjos reversed it and ended up in full mount, ‘RDA’ then quickly locked up an arm-triangle and after tightening it up, Lee was forced to tap.

Where do these two go from here?

‘RDA’ was in the number three spot at 170-pounds before this fight, so the win is massive for Brazilian and definitely pushes him name into contention for the next title shot. With Colby Covington most likely to get the next shot against champ Kamaru Usman, maybe Dos Anjos could wait for Tyron Woodley to recover from his hand injury, and that could be his next fight.

For the first time ever in his MMA career, Lee has now picked up consecutive losses. He started the fight well, but it always looked like he wasn’t going to be able to continue the fast pace he begun at. It’s hard to say what is next for the 26-year-old at this moment, but regardless his future remains at 170-pounds.