Exclusive: James Vick Says Kevin Lee And Michael Chiesa Turned Down Fights With Him
Riding one of the hottest streaks in the UFC Lightweight division, the #12 ranked James Vick takes on surging #14 Francisco Trinaldo at UFC Austin, but his attempt to get bigger fights is a battle of its own.
Vick is fresh off of a second round stoppage of Joseph Duffy — who holds a win over Conor McGregor. Despite a 12-1 career record, Vick tells James Lynch of Fightful.com that he expected a little more after winning the fight so convincingly while fending off injury.
"It went as good as it could. I had a rough camp leading up to it. I always have so many injuries, afterwards I had really bad tendinitis in my knees to the point I could barely walk for a couple of weeks after it. It was a big win. I didn't get the push I wanted after that win," said Vick.
Vick's win gave him his eighth win in 9 UFC fights, 11 of 13 if you include his stint on The Ultimate Fighter: Live. According to Vick, the UFC had big plans for him that were derailed because potential opponents wouldn't accept the fights.
"The UFC wanted me to fight (Evan Dunham) in August and I said yes, and he turned down the fight. Now I have no interest in fighting him because he's 3 spots behind me and he's a 36 year old journeyman. Kevin Lee and Michael Chiesa both turned down fights with me. I can't wait until they try to deny that because I have the text messages. Either Sean Shelby's lying or they're lying one. That's the second time Kevin Lee has turned down a fight with me," said Vick.
Vick said that at the time the Trinaldo fight was offered to him, Trinaldo was ranked ahead of him. Coincidentally, Trinaldo has also won 8 of his last 9 UFC fights.
In the full interview, James Vick (12-1) discusses his upcoming fight against Francisco Trinaldo (22-5) at UFC Fight Night 126 on Feb. 18. James also talks about his win over Joe Duffy, how Kevin Lee and Michael Chiesa turned down matchups with him and how he won money on TJ Dillashaw's 217 win.
