FREE FULL FIGHT: No-contest finish spoils Christian Lee’s highly anticipated return against Alibeg Rasulov at ONE Fight Night 26

ONE lightweight MMA world champion Christian Lee made his long-awaited return to competition last week but it was ruled a no contest after he accidentally poked the eye of his opponent Alibeg Rasulov in the second round of their title showdown.

'The Warrior' broke his two-year, self-imposed break on Dec. 6 at ONE Fight Night 26, where he defended the lightweight gold against Rasulov in the headlining contest of the event which took place at the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

Christian Lee showed little effects, if at all, of the long layoff he had as he met the challenge of his formidable opponent head-on, banking on his dynamic skills that made him one of the more noted fighters in the promotion.

He was making significant inroads with his push until the unfortunate poking incident late in the second round, which rendered Rasulov unable to continue after being checked on and talked to by officials. The match was ruled a no contest with the reigning champion retaining his title.

ONE Championship uploaded the full fight marking the return of Lee on its official YouTube channel for fans to have a better perspective what took place.

Check out the video below:

ONE Fight Night 26 was the first match of Christian Lee since November 2022 where he claimed the vacant welterweight MMA title to become a double world champion. After that, he was moved to take a break to come to terms with the untimely passing of his younger sister and fellow ONE fighter Victoria Lee in December that year.

With the abrupt end to his return to action, Lee said he is open to meeting Rasulov again in a rematch to settle their unfinished business.

The full replay of ONE Fight Night 26 is available on demand to Prime Video subscribers in the United States and Canada.

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Christian Lee believes he could have performed better at ONE Fight Night 26

Christian Lee hardly showed rust from a long layoff in his return to action at ONE Fight Night 26 on Dec. 6 but believed he could have performed better against Turkish opponent Alibeg Rasulov.

The Singaporean-American fighter presented varying looks in his attack which had Rasulov on the defensive until the match was halted late in the second round after Lee poked the eye of the Hyperion Fighters standout, which led to the match being ruled a no contest after.

Lee spoke about what he felt during the contest following a long layoff, sharing in a post-fight interview:

"No, I don't think I felt any ring rust. I do feel like I could have performed better, which I always do after every fight, but I do feel I was 100 percent on track to getting the finish there."

Now back in action, Christian Lee said he looks to compete more frequently if possible.