“Been in the fight game for a few years now” - Christian Lee reflects on his growth and maturity as a fighter

At just 24 years old, Christian Lee already has seven years of elite mixed martial arts experience under his belt. Twenty fights into a career that has many more to come, ‘The Warrior’ currently sits atop the ONE lightweight division with eyes on conquering another title this Friday night when he returns to the Singapore Indoor Stadium.

Stepping into the circle as one half of the ONE on Prime Video 4 main event, Lee will go for a second world championship when he challenges reigning welterweight titleholder Kiamrian Abbasov. Heading into fight week, Christian Lee appeared on the MMA Junkie podcast to share the secret to his incredible success at such an early age:

“I’ve been in the fight game for a few years now. I'm able to just be calm, just approach my fight the same way I do in training. I'm able to think through the moment. I'm able to remember my strategy and just keep a clear mind. And I think that's what helped lead to my success in recent years.”

Remaining calm and having a clear mind will be key to his success heading into Friday night’s champion vs. champion showcase. Stepping up to the welterweight division for the first time, Lee will contend with a bigger, stronger opponent in the Kyrgyzstani-Russian king of welterweights.

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Christian Lee happy to walk away from Ok Rae Yoon rivalry after two years

For the last two years, all Christian Lee has thought about is Ok Rae Yoon. After losing his lightweight world title to the South Korean striker in a highly controversial split decision in 2021, the two fighters finally ran it back nearly a year later with ‘The Warrior’ recapturing ONE gold at ONE 160 in August.

With the two fighters at 1-1, fans thought that a trilogy bout was the logical next step, but not Lee. With the general consensus believing that the judges got it wrong in their first meeting and ‘The Warrior’ delivering a dominant second-round knockout in the rematch, Christian Lee is more than happy to put their rivalry to bed. He told the MMA Super Fan:

“It’s nice having a new opponent. For two years, I was preparing to fight Ok Rae Yoon. So yeah, it is nice to have a new opponent, just a new challenge entirely. Instead of fighting for the lightweight belt and having a rematch, I'm facing a completely different competitor in Abbasov."