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Rinat Fakhretdinov not surprised by 55-second finish of Kevin Lee: 'Pretty much the fight that I expected'

LAS VEGAS – Kevin Lee’s return to the UFC only lasted 55 seconds – something few saw coming … except his opponent Rinat Fakhretdinov.

Lee (19-7 MMA, 11-7 UFC), a former UFC interim lightweight title challenger, was knocked down and then choked unconscious by Fakhretdinov (21-2 MMA, 2-0 UFC) in less than a minute at Saturday’s UFC on ESPN 47 at the UFC Apex. It was a shocking result to many, but not for Fakhretdinov, who said he saw ot coming.

“This is pretty much the fight that I expected,” Fakhretdinov told reporters at the UFC on ESPN 47 post-fight press conference in Russian. “In Russia, it is customary for us to not say anything until you do it, so you do more than what you say, so I was keeping quiet. This is exactly what I was planning for. I know that people were saying that I only have boring fights, but I hope that I proved myself and I changed that.”

Fakhretdinov’s right hand was the beginning of the end. He dropped Lee with a monster shot and then jumped on him to sink in the guillotine choke that put Lee out. Fakhretdinov said this specific punch was pivotal to the game plan.

“I trained that,” Fakhretdinov said. “I knew that if I landed that, that was going to be the end. When I landed – I think it was the right hand – that’s the one. This is my key punch. This is the punch that got me the contract from Dana White, and now the one that I dropped Kevin Lee with. I feel like if I get the next fight soon, this is going to be the shot that gets me the win.”

As far as what’s next for Fakhretdinov, the Russian fighter wants to take some time off. His preparation for Lee was a tough one and his body needs a break.

“I feel good now, but this camp was the best and the worst for me,” Fakhretdinov said. “It was the worst because I had a lot of injuries. I tore my chest pec and I had problems with my knees. I also got sick at one point. There were a lot of things that I had to go through this camp. It was a very injury-prone preparation.

“I really just want to rest for a while, get doctor checkups (and) make sure my body is fine. Also, my parents are out right now, and I want to spend some time with my parents.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 47.



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