"Training as hard as I can" - Two-division king Christian Lee aims to bring his best package in ONE Fight Night 26 return 

Two-division ONE world champion Christian Lee says he aims to be the best version of himself upon his return to action at ONE Fight Night 26. The 26-year-old superstar is back and ready for business after taking a two-year sabbatical from competition.

The first course of action for Lee is to defend his ONE lightweight MMA throne over undefeated Dagestani-born grappler Alibeg Rasulov. Their explosive headliner comes fairly matched as both competitors aim to keep their streaks alive.

For Lee, getting back into the ring was a challenge in and of itself after experiencing the sudden passing of his younger sister, Victoria Lee in Dec. 2022.

However, 'The Warrior' is motivated to keep her memory close by training as hard as he can to keep his belt at his side. As it appears from his recent interview with ONE Championship, that's been the game plan from the start. Lee said:

"So, for me, it's just about training as hard as I can, making sure that I'm training harder than anyone else out there could possibly be training."

Christian Lee returns to the foray after two career-defining victories in both the lightweight and welterweight categories. Back in Aug. 2022, he reclaimed his lightweight gold over long-time foe Ok Rae Yoon with an epic second-round TKO in Singapore.

Lee, later reprised his dominance with a hard-fought upset over Kyrgyzstani hard-hitter Kiamrian Abbasov, to solidify himself as the new welterweight king of MMA.

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"We're actually similar fighters" - Christian Lee admits the challenges he'll face in defending his belt against an opponent who shares an impressive ground game

Christian Lee is excited to test every facet of his skillset against another dominant grappler.

Alibeg Rasulov is by no means an easy guy to outwit. He recently extended his perfect win streak to 14, following a decision victory over former world title challenger Ok Rae Yoon this past July.

In the eyes of the matchmakers, Rasulov lived up to the hype in his debut and was quickly considered a dangerous contender to the lightweight throne.

Lee, therefore, isn't going to underestimate the kind of knowledge and skills Rasulov brings to the table since they are both lethal on the ground and on the feet.

"I think that in some ways, we're actually similar fighters," Lee told ONE. "I see him as a well-rounded mixed martial artist."

ONE Fight Night 26 airs live on Dec. 6 from the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand, via Prime Video for North American subscribers.