Christian Lee says Halil Amir could follow similar path to Saygid Izagakhmaev in ONE Championship

Christian Lee may have a new contender to deal with once he returns to the lightweight division. Currently, ‘The Warrior’ is preparing for an excursion into the welterweight division, challenging reigning champion Kiamrian Abbasov with the goal of becoming a two-division world champion.

Upon his return, Lee will have a couple of top contenders waiting for their world title opportunity, including ONE newcomer Halil Amir. The Turkish standout snatched the No.3 lightweight ranking after a dominant second-round knockout over the formerly ranked Timofey Nastyukhin. Discussing Amir’s impressive showing in an interview with The MMA Superfan, Lee said:

“Yeah, you know props to Halil Amir, that was a great fight against Timofey. I think that it’s similar to Saygid coming into ONE Championship. I think we’ll see Amir on the same path.”

Halil Amir’s debut performance immediately drew comparisons to another lightweight contender in Saygid Izagakhmaev. Debuting in 2022, the Russian submission machine scored a second-round finish of James Nakashima at ONE: Heavy Hitters. He followed that up with a unanimous decision victory over Zhang Lipeng.

Next, Izagakhmaev will step into the circle with Japanese MMA legend Shinya Aoki at ONE 163 on November 19.

Watch highlights of Halil Amir's ONE debut below:

---

Christian Lee already eyeing his first welterweight title defense

Christian Lee may be weeks away from challenging Kiamrian Abbasov for the ONE welterweight world title at ONE on Prime Video 4, but ‘The Warrior’ is already looking at the man he will face in his first defense of the welterweight world championship. Lee believes it will come down to two men who will square off on December 2 at ONE on Prime Video 5.

The bout will be between ONE Championship debutant Roberto Soldic, the promotion’s summertime blockbuster signing, and undefeated Russian standout Murad Ramazanov. Speaking to The MMA Superfan, Christian Lee shared his belief that the winner between Soldic and Ramazanov will be the clear No.1 contender for the welterweight championship:

“I think that’s a title eliminator fight. I think that whoever wins that fight will be next in line for the belt. Ramazanov, I believe he has three wins in the welterweight division, a very impressive record. He could have been next in line for the welterweight shot as well. And with Roberto coming in, bringing the resume that he has, I think definitely the winner of that fight will be next.”