Oftentimes, things do not turn out as expected. And the best of the bests fall much to the dismay of the crowd. Now, imagine an arena packed with thousands of people cheering for a wrestling legend. And much to the contrary, the legend fails to take the win. This is exactly what happened at the FloWrestling Night in America. Going on one against Masanosuke Ono, Spencer Lee lost the bout, much to the surprise of the crowd. Defeating the crowd favorite 3-2, the match seemed to get pretty much physical right from the word go. 

As the game started, it was Masanosuke who took to the center and controlled the proceedings. This way, it became easy for the Japanese wrestler to move Lee right to the edge. He even managed to secure as many as three single points for step-outs. And this is where things get interesting. A couple of these calls did not sit well with Lee’s corner. Manned by Dan Denis and Tom Brands, they pointed out how Lee did not get similar points earlier. The match they were referring to was the 2024 Olympics gold medal match against Rei Higuchi. Back then, Lee did not get any step-out points while this time, he was on the receiving end. 

With a swarm of controversy circulating around the bout, Spencer Lee decided to come out and address the issue. Surprisingly, Lee did not look to be siding with the controversial narrative. “It’s up to the ref, and at the end of the day there’s no excuse. I was on the edge of the mat. He wasn’t. If I’m pushing him out and the ref gives me points or not that’s because I created an opportunity for it to be a subjective call toward (me), right?” said Lee. The US wrestler also mentioned how he was the one in a spot of bother on the mat and not his opponent. Thus, there was no way where Lee was qualified to talk about the referee’s alleged faults. 

Spencer Lee also slammed the critics who were constantly pushing on the controversial narrative. Lee stated that wrestling is all about staying put in the middle of the mat. Thus, if anybody fails to do that, it simply means that the wrestler was not good enough on the given day. “So, if anyone says otherwise, they don’t know wrestling. They should know that you should get your butt to the center, and you should wrestle hard, and you should not be in that position,” Lee further added. Surely, this is quite an honest and bold take on the part of Spencer Lee. 

After all, not many athletes have the guts to stand up and admit to the world about their faults. And if that was not enough, right after his shock defeat, Spencer Lee dropped yet another bold statement. Without giving any excuses, Lee straight up confessed about taking the stinging loss like a man.

No excuses, no regrets: Spencer Lee owns up to shocking defeat like a Champion

Spencer Lee has built his career on dominance, but on February 26, he found himself on the losing end against Masanosuke Ono. The Japanese wrestler stunned the former Olympic silver medalist in a tight 3-2 battle, handing Lee a rare and bitter defeat. But instead of searching for excuses or downplaying the loss, Lee showed the mindset of a true champion—accepting it with grace and self-reflection.

“It seems that when I wrestle these guys who are gaming me and they’re really good at what they do, I’m not doing a lot of offense,” Lee admitted, as quoted by On3.com. He acknowledged the challenge Ono posed, recognizing the hype surrounding his rival but refusing to hide behind it. Lee added, “I think I respected him too much. There’s a lot of hype around him—not putting him down by any means—he beat me, and I’ll take the loss as a man.”

Lee’s words carried the weight of someone who understands that even the greatest wrestlers must sometimes face setbacks. While his legendary run in American wrestling has been built on relentless victories, this loss was a moment of rare vulnerability. Yet, instead of dwelling on what went wrong, he took full accountability—an attitude that sets champions apart.

No excuses, no dodging reality. Spencer Lee met defeat head-on, proving that true greatness isn’t just about winning but about how one handles losing.