“He’s going to win that one” - Christian Lee believes Timofey Nastyukhin can bounce back at ONE on Prime Video 2

No.3-ranked lightweight contender Timofey Nastyukhin will look to get back into the win column when he meets undefeated Turkish competitor Halil Amir at ONE on Prime Video 2 on September 29.

Amir, who will be making his promotional debut, holds a record of 7-0 and a 100% finish rate that includes six wins via knockout and one by way of submission. It will be a tough test for Nastyukhin, who hopes to recover from back-to-back losses to Dagi Arslanaliev and the reigning lightweight world champion, Christian Lee.

Backing the former FILA Pankration World Champion is Christian Lee, who just regained the lightweight crowd with a dominant performance over Ok Rae Yoon at ONE 160 in August.

Speaking to ONE Championship, ‘The Warrior’ believes that Timofey Nastyukhin is one of the best lightweights in the promotion despite his recent setbacks:

“Before Timofey and I fought, he was the next guy in line. In my opinion, he was the No.1 contender at the time after being on a streak of wins, so I think he’s definitely still among the best lightweight fighters in the division.”

As long as Timofey Nastyukhin comes into the bout focused and ready to bring everything he has, Lee believes he will be victorious against the Turkish debutant.

“I think that if Timofey brings his A-game, if he comes in focused, he’s going to have a good fight. I think he’s going to win that one.”

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Christian Lee eyes Timofey Nastyukhin and other potential challengers for his lightweight world title

While Timofey Nastyukhin fights his way back into title contention, Christian Lee is looking ahead to the next possible challenger for his newly won lightweight world title. Though ‘The Warrior’ has expressed interest in taking a crack at welterweight gold, he understands the importance of defending the title wrapped around his waist.

One potential challenger is No.5-ranked Saygid Izagakhmaev. The Academy MMA product will return to the circle on September 29 as part of the ONE 161 card that will precede ONE on Prime Video 2. There he will meet Chinese opponent Zhang Lipeng.

Speaking to ONE, Christian Lee revealed that he believes Izagakhmaev will come out on top in the bout and could find himself close to a world title opportunity.

“I think Saygid is going to win that fight. Lipeng, he’s a veteran of the sport, but I think Saygid brings a special skill set to the division. I think it’s going to take someone special to really stop his run, and I see him working his way up to a title shot real soon.”