Macksom Lee hopes to prove himself to UFC matchmakers with an
emphatic win at LFA 237. | Getty/DWCS
After suffering his first defeat in 10 MMA fights against Hecher Sosa
on
Dana White’s Contender Series last September, Macksom Lee
will return to the cage on July 24 against Carlos
Tardio (12-2) in the main event of LFA 237 in La Crosse, Wisconsin.
“The best choice I made was to come to the USA to do a camp
coordinated by master Roberto “Facada” Neves. It’s the first time
I’ve done a camp totally focused on me with sparring emulating my
opponent’s style,” Macksom told Sherdog.com.
Tragedy Strikes
The son of Markine
Santos—an athlete on the Brazilian national Sanda team— Lee
literally grew up in a dojo.
“When I was 5, my father separated from my mother and took me to
live with him at his gym. So, I literally grew up on the mats. I
started training Sanda between the ages of 8 and 9, competed for
the first time at 10, and haven’t stopped since,” Lee says,
revealing that his middle name — he was born Macksom Lee
dos Santos — was a tribute from his father to his idol, Bruce
Lee.
After becoming the Brazilian Sanda champion for two consecutive
years, Maksom convinced his fatherto let him pursue his dream of
transitioning to MMA.
“He even saw me win two MMA fights—he was in my corner—before the
tragedy struck when I was 17,” the young fighter said, recalling
the day his father died after being struck by lightning on a beach
in Paraná.
Following the passing of his mentor and great idol, Maksom was
taken under the wing of Vale Tudo fighter Roberto “Facada” Neves, a
teammate of his father’s on the Sanda national squad.
“I had the honor of being a friend and teammate of his father,
Markine—he was like a brother to me. When he passed away, Maksom
became like a son to me, and the goal of making him a champion
became mine as well,” Facada told Sherdog, expressing his
conviction that Maksom will win this time now that his protégé is
free of serious injury.
“A lot of people don’t know this, but just 15 days before the
fight, he took a bad fall in the gym and tore his shoulder
ligaments; he couldn’t even move his arm for nearly four days. He
only fought because he’s a true warrior and absolutely didn’t want
to miss the chance to reach the UFC.”
Lee believes that, without the injury, he will be able to show his
full potential.
“I didn’t say anything so I wouldn’t sound like I was making
excuses, but the truth is that I basically just survived that
fight,” he said. “That really bothered me, because one of my
greatest virtues is defending takedowns. Yet, even with all those
issues, my opponent couldn’t knock me out or submit me, and he
ended up getting signed. Now I want to show the UFC matchmakers
that, without injuries, I’m fully capable of beating anyone in the
division.”
Lee doesn’t hold back when asked how he plans to defeat Tardio: “If
everything goes according to plan, I hope to knock the Bolivian out
in the very first round.”
Confident in his protégé’s victory, Facada hopes that he can help
Lee take another step toward realizing his close friend’s
dream.
“Macksom works incredibly hard and has been improving rapidly; I’m
certain he’ll soon show the world his true potential,” Facada said.
“I can say without a doubt that if my friend were here, he would be
extremely proud to see the man, the athlete and the warrior his son
has become.”