Kevin Lee wants to get back to the UFC — so much so, that he says he was willing to fight on Dana White’s Contender Series to get there.

The one-time interim title challenger got a second chance with the promotion in July 2023, getting stopped by Rinat Fakhretdinov in 55 seconds at UFC Vegas 76. “Motown Phenom” says he’s been at Kill Cliff FC sharpening his game, and even had a discussion with the UFC matchmakers about competing on the Contender Series to show how passionate he is about moving forward in his career.

“I mean, I’m interested in doing more grappling matches and things of that nature, but my real love is for MMA,” Lee said on Anik & Florian. “I want to compete again, and just to show you how serious I am, I even told Sean Shelby that I’m willing to go on Dana White’s Contender Series to show how serious I am about competing at a high level.

“This next fight will be, not about money, or anything else, but to show that I can compete, and my body can hold up amongst the tension that I’m putting it under.”

Lee says he has a great relationship with Shelby, along with many of the UFC brass to this day. Despite that, Lee says Shelby denied his request.

“He said no, but I was willing to do it,” Lee said. “It’s $5,000 flat. That’s all you get. For $5,000, we’re losing money, but I’m still willing to do it.”

Whether it’s the UFC, PFL, ONE, or any other known promotion, the 27-fight pro says his phone will be on waiting for the call.

“As far as the timeline, that’s going to be for whatever promotion comes first, I’m signing that deal,” Lee said.”