Could Saygid Izagakhmaev be next in line for Christian Lee’s world title?

Russian contender Saygid Izagakhmaev could very well be the next big thing in ONE Championship’s lightweight division. After an impressive promotional debut and boasting a professional record of 20-2, many believe that Izagakhmaev could be the next man to challenge ONE’s lightweight world champion, Christian Lee.

Izagakhmaev will get a chance to lay claim to a world title opportunity when he meets Zhang Lipeng at ONE 161 on September 30th. ONE Championship hyped up the return of the Dagestani destroyer with a recent clip on Instagram with the following caption:

“Saygid Izagakhmaev is a FORCE 🔥 The Dagestani powerhouse collides with Zhang Lipeng in a lightweight BATTLE on September 29 at ONE 161! 👊⁠ @saygid_izagakhmaev”

Izagakhmaev destroyed former ONE welterweight world title challenger James Nakashima with an impressive second-round submission earlier this year. He hopes to continue his rise up the lightweight rankings against Lipeng, who has won back-to-back fights in the Circle against Eduard Folayang and Ruslan Emilbek Uulu.

Both fighters have proven that they are certainly as good as their professional records, but will have much more to lose than their ‘O’ when they square off. For Izagakhmaev, a potential world title shot hangs in the balance. For Lipeng, a win over the Dagestani powerhouse would likely thrust him into the division’s top five.

Watch Khabib Nurmagomedov discuss his teammate below:

---

How Saygid Izagakhmaev earns himself a world title opportunity against Christian Lee at ONE 161

Despite only having one win inside the Circle, Saygid Izagakhmaev is very much in the conversation for title contention. With a three-fight win streak that extends outside of ONE Championship, a big win for the budding Russian star could be exactly what he needs to jump the line and get a crack at ‘The Warrior’ in the near future.

Perhaps the biggest factor helping Izagakhmaev is the fact that he is the only member of the lightweight top five that Christian Lee has not already defeated, making a showdown between the two a fresh match-up for Lee and ONE Championship fans. If Saygid Izagakhmaev delivers a memorable performance at ONE 161 on September 30th, there’s no reason to think that he is not the next man in line.

Of course, much of that relies on Christian Lee’s next move. Following his successful bid to reclaim the lightweight crown over Ok Rae Yoon at ONE 160, ‘The Warrior’ has teased a potential move to welterweight with the goal of becoming a two-division world champion.

There are multiple scenarios at play, but once ONE 161 is in the books, we should have a much clearer picture of what to expect in the future for all parties involved.

Watch the fight below: