Christian Lee will be looking to win a second ONE Championship title this weekend. He is making his welterweight debut against Kiamrian Abbasov and the 24 year old is not expecting to go the distance.
He lost his lightweight title after losing by split decision to Ok Rae Yoon. Lee avenged the defeat conclusively, knocking the Korean out in the second round.
He doesn’t want to risk leaving this one in the hands of the judges and plans to put Abbasov away at ONE on Prime Video 4,
“I absolutely plan on finishing this fight. I’m looking to finish my opponent as quickly as I can. I’m ready to go all five, but I’m planning to get it done within three.”
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Lots of respect
Abbasov, lost his title on the scales as he he was unable to make weight meaning that the vacant welterweight belt will be on the line for lee only. The press conference took place before the weigh in but the Hawaiian is adamant he will not be overlooking the former champion,
“In no way am I looking past Kiamrian Abbasov. I have a lot of respect for him and think he’s a great fighter.”
This will be the second time in four months that Lee has fought for a title in Singapore. It is a quick turnaround for the current lightweight champion but he says he had no hesitation in accepting the fight,
“I’m thankful for the opportunity and I’m really looking forwards to this fight.”
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Unfinished business
Should Lee win he will have two titles to defend. There was some suggestion he might make the move to welterweight a permanent one but Chatri Sityodtong believes the 24 year old still has unfinished business at lightweight.
“I think there are some new folks in Christian Lee’s division he still needs to conquer that are very dangerous. Khabib’s teammate, Saygid Izagakhmaev, is a good example so Christian has his hands full no matter what.”
It is the second time in a row that Lee has headlined a card as a title challenger as opposed to being the champion. A few people were surprised he accepted two title fights in different divisions in quick succession.
But Lee sees this as a pivotal moment in his career and says the opportunity was simply too good to turn down,
“I’m very motivated for this fight. It’s such a big moment for me in my career.”
