“I’ve been waiting for this day” - Christian Lee ready to take the United States by storm in world title defense against Alibeg Rasulov

Double ONE world champion Christian Lee is excited for his long-awaited return to action later this year, more so since it is happening in the United States, something he has long dreamed of.

'The Warrior' will defend his lightweight MMA word title at ONE 169 in Atlanta, Georgia, on Nov. 8. He will be challenged by blue-chip fighter Alibeg Rasulov of Turkey in the title clash, at the State Farm Arena, home of the NBA's Atlanta Hawks.

It will mark Christian Lee's first outing after two years for personal reasons.

In an interview with the Cageside Press on Sept. 19, the 26-year-old Canadian-American fighter spoke about the significance of competing in front of American fans.

Lee said:

"I'm excited [to be competing in the U.S.]. My whole professional career, I've been fighting all over Asia, and I've lived here -- I've lived in Hawaii, so I've been growing up in the U.S. and I've been waiting for this day for a long time."

Watch the interview below:

Christian Lee was last in action in November 2022, where he claimed the vacant welterweight MMA world title with a TKO victory over former divisional king Kiamrian Abbasov to become a two-division MMA world champion.

He took a self-imposed break after to mourn the untimely passing of younger sister and fellow ONE fighter Victoria in December that year. Despite away for some time, Lee said he is now ready to resume his fighting career, beginning with the fight in Atlanta.

Meanwhile, out to dethrone him as lightweight champion in his return is Rasulov, 31, who is undefeated in 14 professional fights, the last in his ONE debut back in July over South Korean and former ONE lightweight titleholder Ok Rae Yoon by decision.

ONE 169: Atlanta will air live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription. Tickets for the event, meanwhile, are available for purchase via Ticketmaster.

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Christian Lee touts exciting fight against Alibeg Rasulov at ONE 169

Just as he is excited to return to competition, Christian Lee also touts an engaging title match when he and Alibeg Rasulov lock horns at ONE 169: Atlanta on Nov. 4.

The ONE lightweight MMA world champion shared this in the same interview with Cageside Press, highlighting that seeing his younger brother Adrian compete at ONE 168 in Colorado earlier this month only pumped him more to impress in his scheduled U.S. match.

Christian Lee said:

"I'm excited. It was great energy in Colorado. The fights were amazing, the crowd was amazing, and I expect nothing less in Atlanta, I think it's going to be a great show."

The Lee-Rasulov title match is one of four title matches on offer at ONE 169, with champion Anatoly Malykhin (heavyweight MMA), Rodtang Jitmuangnon (flyweight Muay Thai) and Tawanchai PK Saenchai (featherweight Muay Thai) also set to defend their belts.