3 Lesser Known Facts About Two-Division ONE World Champion Christian Lee

Christian “The Warrior” Lee had a fantastic 2022, to say the least. The Singaporean-American sensation started off the calendar year fired up to reclaim the ONE Lightweight World Title he narrowly dropped to South Korean star Ok Rae Yoon in September last year.

When they rematched at ONE 160, Lee picked apart Ok across all areas and earned a quick finish to reclaim his gold.

Not one to rest on his laurels, “The Warrior” then accepted an offer to move up a division and go toe-to-toe with ONE Welterweight World Champion Kiamrian “Brazen” Abbasov last month. After an early scare in that tussle, Lee came back to decimate the Kyrgystan warrior and earn a fourth-round finish to pick up the welterweight strap. 

Both performances earned him a US$50,000 performance bonus, a sweet cherry on top of a fulfilling year. With the new year just around the corner, fans can expect the young superstar to offer up another 12 months filled with explosive outings.

To get hyped for that, here are three fast facts about the two-division king that you should know.

#1 He Turned Pro At 17

In December 2015, the United MMA and Evolve fighter became the youngest male athlete to debut in ONE – and his promotional bow also marked his first professional MMA fight. The teenage star was paired against David Meak in a featherweight battle. Though his opponent had bucketloads more experience than him, Lee dominated the Aussie veteran on his way to his fastest career finish to date.

“The Warrior” scored with huge punches and kicks as soon as the contest got underway, and the seasoned brawler could do nothing but retreat.

READ MORE – Christian Lee Breaks Down Kiamrian Abbasov Matchup at ONE on Prime Video 4

A stiff left hook from Lee eventually wrapped up the contest, handing the young star the win after just 29 seconds.

#2 He Is The Youngest MMA World Champion & Two-Division MMA World Champion 

Lee became the youngest MMA World Champion when he earned a TKO win over Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki in May 2019. “The Warrior” finished the Japanese veteran with a barrage of ground strikes to force referee Olivier Coste to halt the contest at the 51-second mark of round two, giving him his first World Title at just 21 years old.

Though he dropped his gold to Ok last year, Lee reclaimed it in a one-sided performance over the latter in August this year.

His triumph over Abbasov at ONE on Prime Video 4 elevated him to two-division World Champion – the youngest to achieve that historic feat at 24.

#3 Lee Owns Two Big Records In ONE

Along with being the youngest-ever male MMA world champion and two-division king, Lee also holds two significant records inside the Circle.

He has the most wins in ONE history (17) and the most finishes (16). 

READ MORE – 5 Fights That Demonstrate Why Christian Lee Is One of the Most Coveted MMA Fighters of the Recent Times

The only blemish on Lee’s nearly 100 percent finishing rate came against Dagi Arslanaliev in October 2019. Despite not getting the finish, “The Warrior” still defeated the Turkish star by unanimous decision to become the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Champion.