Christian Lee (fighter)

Christian Lee (Chinese: 李胜龙, born June 21, 1998) is a Canadian–American mixed martial artist of Chinese–Singaporean and Korean heritage who competes in ONE Championship.[3] He holds Canadian and American citizenship. He is the current ONE Lightweight World Champion and the 2019 ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Champion.

Christian Lee
BornChristian Lee
(1998-06-21) June 21, 1998
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Nickname(s)The Warrior
ResidenceWaipahu, Hawaii, United States
NationalityCanadian and American
Height180 cm (5 ft 11 in)
Weight75.7 kg (167 lb; 11.92 st)
DivisionFeatherweight (2015–2019)
Lightweight (2019–present)
StylePankration, Taekwondo, BJJ, Muay Thai, Wrestling
StanceOrthodox
Fighting out ofTanjong Katong, Singapore
TeamEvolve MMA
United MMA
RankBlack belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Mike Fowler[1][2]
Years active2015–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total17
Wins14
By knockout9
By submission4
By decision1
Losses3
By submission1
By decision1
By disqualification1
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

On May 17, 2019, Lee defeated Shinya Aoki to win the ONE Lightweight World Championship and became the youngest-ever male mixed martial arts world champion,[4][5] as well as the first brother-sister pair of mixed martial arts world champions, with his sister holding the ONE Atomweight World Championship.[6]

Background

Born in Vancouver to a Chinese-Singaporean father and a Korean mother, Lee moved to Hawaii when he was five years old. As both his parents are decorated martial artists, Lee started training in the sport from a young age. Lee's older sister Angela (born July 8, 1996, in Vancouver) is also an MMA fighter with ONE Championship[7] and his two younger siblings, Victoria and Adrian (born in Waipahu), also train in martial arts.

At the 2012 USA Pankration national championships, Lee won two national titles and one silver medal.[8][9] He also won the World Championship in the MMA division at the 2012 World Pangration Athlima Federation Championships.[10][11]

Mixed martial arts career

Lee trains out of United MMA in Waipahu, Hawaii and Evolve MMA in Singapore, alongside his teammate and sister, Angela and her husband, Bruno Pucci, who also competes in ONE Championship's bantamweight division.

Lee made his amateur debut in 2015 at Star Elite Cage Fighting, where he defeated Avery Sanchis via first-round submission.[12]

ONE Championship

At the age of 17, Lee signed with ONE Championship and made his promotional debut at ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions on December 11, 2015, earning his first career win with a 29-second TKO of David Meak.[13]

Lee followed that up by submitting Mahmoud Deab Mohamed in the first round with a kimura at ONE Championship: Clash Of Heroes on January 29, 2016.[14]

On March 18, 2016, he earned another first-round win against Anthony Engelen at ONE Championship: Union of the Warriors with a TKO stoppage by punches and elbow[15]

At ONE Championship: Ascent To Power on May 6, 2016, Lee improved to 4-0 when he submitted Cary Bullos in the opening round with a brabo choke.[16]

Lee continued his streak of first-round finishes when he stopped Rocky Batolbatol by TKO at ONE Championship: Kingdom Of Champions on May 27, 2016.[17]

In his next match on August 13, 2016, Lee suffered his first professional defeat to rising featherweight Martin Nguyen at ONE Championship: Heroes of the World, losing in the first-round via a guillotine choke.[18]

Lee rebounded by defeating Wan Jianping with a first-round TKO at ONE Championship: Kings of Destiny on April 21, 2017.[19]

For the first time in his career, Lee was pushed to three rounds before finally submitting Keanu Subba with an armbar at ONE Championship: Quest for Greatness on August 18, 2017.[20]

On December 9, 2017, at ONE Championship: Warriors of the World, Lee defeated former ONE Lightweight World Champion Kotetsu Boku in the first round by TKO.[21]

Lee submitted Kazunori Yokota in the second round at ONE Championship: Visions of Victory on March 9, 2018 to clinch his fourth straight win.[22]

After his strong run of performances, Lee would earn a title shot against ONE Featherweight World Champion Martin Nguyen at ONE Championship: Unstoppable Dreams on 18 May 2018.[23] Following a five-round back-and-forth battle, Lee would lose by a narrow split-decision, marking his second defeat to the Vietnamese-Australian featherweight.[24]

Lee dropped another match against Filipino Edward Kelly at ONE Championship: Beyond the Horizon on September 8, 2018 after he was disqualified under the promotion's global martial art ruleset.[25] During his takedown of Kelly, Lee was judged to have used an illegal belly-to-back suplex that caused Kelly to land on his head and neck.

He got back on the win sheet against former Pancrase Lightweight Champion Kazuki Tokudome in a 73 kg catchweight bout at ONE Championship: Heart of the Lion on 9 November 2018, defeating the Japanese fighter in the first-round via TKO.[26] The match was added to the card on short notice after his sister Angela Lee, who was scheduled to face Xiong Jing Nan for the ONE Strawweight Championship, was forced to pull out due to a back injury.[27]

In his anticipated rematch against Edward Kelly at ONE Championship: Eternal Glory on January 19, 2019, Lee stopped Kelly via first-round TKO and pushed his overall record to 14–3.[28]

ONE Lightweight Champion

Lee agreed to an open challenge for the title from ONE Lightweight World Champion Shinya Aoki, issued in March 2019 just after Aoki had won the Lightweight title himself.[29][30] Lee, a featherweight, would be moving up a division in order to challenge for the belt.[31] On May 17, 2019, at ONE Championship: Enter The Dragon, Lee survived an armbar submission attempt to upset the Japanese grappling legend in the second-round via TKO finish and win his first mixed martial arts world title.[32][33] His victory also made him the youngest ever male mixed martial arts world champion,[4] as well as the first ever brother-sister pair of world champions in the history of mixed martial arts, with his sister Angela Lee holding the ONE Atomweight Championship.[6]

On September 26, 2019, ONE Championship Chairman and founder Chatri Sityodtong announced that Lee had accepted an offer to serve as a late-notice replacement for the injured Eddie Alvarez in the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Championship Final. The match would be against Turkish finalist Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev at ONE Championship: Century Part I on 13 October 2019, after initial replacement Filipino fighter Edouard Folayang had trouble with visa issues. The late insertion into the event would allow Lee to fight on the same card as his sister Angela Lee, who was defending her Atomweight title that night.[34][35] Lee would go on to win by unanimous decision, earning the ONE Lightweight Word Grand Prix Championship.[36]

Lee defended his ONE Lightweight Championship against Iuri Lapicus at ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix on October 30, 2020.[37] After surviving an initial barrage, he won the fight in the first round by TKO via punches on the ground. [38]

Personal life

Lee and his wife Katie are expecting their first child, due in April 2021.[2]

Championships and accomplishments

Amateur pankration
  • World Pangration Athlima Federation World Championships:
    • 2012 Agon Men, cadets, 60 kg - Champion.[39]
  • USA Pankration National Championships
    • 2012 Youth, Boys, Ages 12 – 13, 125 - 153 lbs, Silver.[40]

Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts record
Professional record breakdown
17 matches 14 wins 3 losses
By knockout 9 0
By submission 4 1
By decision 1 1
By disqualification 0 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 14–3 Iuri Lapicus TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Inside the Matrix October 30, 2020 1 2:19 Kallang, Singapore Defended ONE Lightweight (170 lb) Championship.
Win 13–3 Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev Decision (unanimous) ONE Championship: Century Part 1 October 13, 2019 3 5:00 Tokyo, Japan Won the ONE Championship Lightweight Grand Prix.
Win 12–3 Shinya Aoki TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Enter The Dragon May 17, 2019 2 0:51 Kallang, Singapore Won the ONE Lightweight (170 lb) Championship.
Win 11–3 Edward Kelly TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Eternal Glory January 19, 2019 1 2:53 Jakarta, Indonesia
Win 10–3 Kazuki Tokudome TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Heart of the Lion November 9, 2018 1 3:07 Kallang, Singapore Catchweight bout (73 kg)
Loss 9–3 Edward Kelly DQ (illegal suplex) ONE Championship: Beyond the Horizon September 8, 2018 1 2:19 Shanghai, China
Loss 9–2 Martin Nguyen Decision (split) ONE Championship: Unstoppable Dreams May 18, 2018 5 5:00 Kallang, Singapore For the ONE Featherweight (155 lb) Championship.
Win 9–1 Kazunori Yokota Submission (Guillotine Choke) ONE Championship: Visions of Victory March 9, 2018 2 4:34 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Win 8–1 Kotetsu Boku TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Warriors of the World December 9, 2017 1 3:24 Bangkok, Thailand
Win 7–1 Keanu Subba Submission (armbar) ONE Championship: Quest for Greatness August 18, 2017 3 1:11 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Win 6–1 Jianping Wan TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Kings Of Destiny April 21, 2017 1 4:50 Manila, Philippines
Loss 5–1 Martin Nguyen Submission (guillotine choke) ONE Championship: Heroes of the World August 13, 2016 1 4:30 Macau, China
Win 5–0 Rocky Batolbatol TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Kingdom of Champions May 27, 2016 1 2:14 Bangkok, Thailand
Win 4–0 Cary Bullos Submission (brabo choke) ONE Championship: Ascent to Power May 6, 2016 1 2:07 Kallang, Singapore
Win 3–0 Anthony Engelen TKO (punches and elbows) ONE Championship: Union of Warriors March 18, 2016 1 4:14 Yangon, Myanmar
Win 2–0 Mahmoud Deab Mohamed Submission (kimura) ONE Championship: Clash of Heroes January 29, 2016 1 2:20 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Win 1–0 David Meak TKO (punches) ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions December 11, 2015 1 0:29 Manila, Philippines

See also

References
  1. "Christian Lee - Assistant Instructor, Evolve MMA". Evolve MMA. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  2. Jesse Holland (November 26, 2020). "ONE vs UFC? Christian Lee confident he can beat any lightweight — even Khabib". mmamania.com.
  3. "Christian Lee Profile". Sherdog.
  4. Lee, David. "MMA: Christian Lee beats Japan's Shinya Aoki to become One Championship's youngest world champion". The Straits Times.
  5. "The Youngest MMA World Champions in History are Asian Siblings". NextShark. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  6. Atkin, Nick (17 May 2019). "One Championship: Christian Lee stuns Shinya Aoki to win lightweight title on night of huge shocks in Singapore". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  7. "One Championship: Christian Lee steps out of sister Angela's shadow". South China Morning Post. 2019-10-13. Retrieved 2020-06-14.
  8. Paz, Reagan. "Continuing a legacy: The Lee siblings fight their way to gold at world pankration tournament". Trojan Times.
  9. Danilewicz, Jack. "Mililani's Lee Ohana Keeping Alive Ancient Greek Combat". MidWeek.
  10. "United MMA Instructors". United MMA.
  11. "2012 World Pangration Championship". World Pangration Athlima Federation.
  12. "SEC STAR ELITE CAGE FIGHTING". Sherdog.
  13. Knapp, Brian. "Brandon Vera KOs Paul Cheng, Claims Inaugural One Championship Heavyweight Crown". Sherdog.
  14. Knapp, Brian. "Ev Ting Guillotine Submits Eric Kelly in One Championship 'Clash of Heroes' Main Event". Sherdog.
  15. Knapp, Brian. "Aung La N Sang Guillotines Mohamed Ali in One Championship 'Union of Warriors' Main Event". Sherdog.
  16. Knapp, Brian. "Angela Lee Takes Atomweight Title in FOTY Contender at One Championship 42". Sherdog.
  17. Icasiano, Nissi. "ONE FC: Pinoy MMA bet Rocky Batolbatol yields to Christian Lee". Rappler.
  18. Critchfield, Tristen. "Adriano Moraes Submits Tilek Batyrov, Claims Interim 135-Pound Crown at One Championship 45". Sherdog.
  19. "MMA: Philippines' Eduard Folayang retains championship on home soil". ChannelNewsAsia.
  20. "Christian Lee submits Keanu Subba in third round of featherweight battle". AsiaOne.
  21. Nichols, Jake. "Christian Lee stops Kotetsu Boku with an incredible slam KO". The Body Lock.
  22. "Christian Lee defeats Kazunori Yokota, makes history in Malaysia". Stadiumastro.
  23. Maralit, Kristina. "Martin Nguyen makes quick ONE return in match vs. Christian Lee in Singapore". SnippetX.
  24. "Martin Nguyen edges Christian Lee at One: Unstoppable Dreams". FightNewsAustralia.
  25. Carroll, Peter. "ONE Championship results: Christian Lee DQ'd for spiking Edward Kelly on his head". MMA Fighting.
  26. "Christian Lee finishes former King of Pancrase Kazuki Tokudome". ASIAMMA.
  27. Anderson, Jay (4 November 2018). "Angela Lee Out of ONE Championship: Heart of the Lion". Cageside Press. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  28. Giongco, Mark. "ONE: Team Lakay's Edward Kelly stopped by Christian Lee in 1st round of rematch". Inquirer.net.
  29. "Shinya Aoki stares down Christian Lee in Singapore". ASIAMMA.
  30. Jennings, Leon. "Shinya Aoki Surprised By Surprised Reaction To Christian Lee Call Out". Asian Persuasion MMA.
  31. Honasan, Santino (5 April 2019). "ONE Championship: Shinya Aoki to defend LW title against Christian Lee, Sage Northcutt to make debut in Singapore". ABS-CBN Sports. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  32. Cruz, Guilherme. "Christian Lee survives armbar scare, knocks out Shinya Aoki to win ONE Championship title". MMA Fighting.
  33. Atkin, Nick. "One Championship: Christian Lee stuns Shinya Aoki to win lightweight title on night of huge shocks in Singapore". South China Morning Post.
  34. "Christian Lee replaces injured Eddie Alvarez in ONE lightweight World Grand Prix final". MMA Fighting.
  35. Aziz, Sazali Abdul (30 September 2019). "MMA: Christian Lee replaces injured Eddie Alvarez in One Championship grand prix final in Tokyo". The Straits Times. Retrieved 11 June 2020.
  36. Tahilramani, Gaurav. "Defeating Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev, Christian Lee became the ONE Lightweight Grand Prix champion". Live Sport Asia.
  37. "Aung La Nsang faces Reinier de Ridder in one of four title fights at ONE: 'Inside the Matrix'". asianmma.com. October 5, 2020.
  38. "ONE: Inside the Matrix — Christian Lee Serves Up First Defeat for Iuri Lapicus". cagesidepress. October 30, 2020.
  39. "2012 World Pangration Championship results". World Pangration Athlima Federation.
  40. "USA Pankration National Championships" (PDF). FightLeague.
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