MMA News: Christian Lee Wants To Bring Back Lightweight Grand Prix After He Beats Ok Rae Yoon

Christian Lee has been through the wringer, facing ONE Championship’s toughest talents at both featherweight and lightweight.

But his most difficult fight wasn’t his first world title shot against Martin Nguyen, nor was it his lightweight title defense against knockout artist Timofey Nastyukhin.

Rather, Lee’s toughest test came in the form of a short-notice, three-round scrap against the highly-regarded Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev in the final round of 2019’s ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix.

Lee ended up routing Arslanaliev, winning via dominant unanimous decision against a man many considered the "boogeyman" of the promotion’s lightweight division.

“I had 10 days to lose 10 pounds and fly to Japan and fight the number one contender in the lightweight division,” Lee recounted his first experience in a World Grand Prix.

“I wasn't currently in fight camp, I wasn't currently training and I took the fight against [Arslanaliev] who was the No. 1 contender, so that fight, even though it was only three rounds, was my toughest fight so far, simply because I had no preparation for that fight. I was not in fight shape, I didn't have a proper camp and I took the fight against a dangerous opponent. That was the toughest fight for me so far.”

On Friday, September 24, in the main event of the upcoming ONE: Revolution, Lee will take on South Korea’s Ok Rae Yoon with a chance to entirely clear out the lightweight division’s Top Five.

Ok is ranked third in the lightweight bracket and is the only man in the top five Lee has yet to fight and beat.

Lee explained that should he defeat Ok—as many experts expect him to—all of the division’s best will have fallen to him, with no new contenders in sight.

His analysis, while accurate, leaves the division and the ONE Championship brass between a rock and a hard place. But the champ has a familiar solution.

“I think [another Lightweight World Grand Prix] would be a good idea. It would draw a lot of attention to the lightweight division. After Ok Rae Yoon there’s no one left in line for the lightweight title, there’s no one left for me to defend my belt against,” Lee said.

“I think it would be interesting for the division, and it would be a good way to find the true No. 1 contender.”

Lee’s grand solution not only provides a fan-friendly format to determine who comes next, but it also opens the door for novel contenders to enter the mix.

ONE athletes such as former UFC champion Eddie Alvarez and promotional newcomer Zhang Lipeng as well as veterans like Pieter Buist or Marat Gafurov would see an opportunity to quickly ascend the proverbial queue.

Additionally, a move-up in weight for Martin Nguyen—the man responsible for two of Lee’s three losses as a pro—could potentially be added to the pool.

Regardless of who joins the hypothetical tournament, it does not matter to the 23-year-old world champion.

Lee’s outlook on the division—and the organization as a whole—as well as his willingness to return to the Grand Prix format, was summed up concisely.

“There are a lot of good fighters that are currently fighting… But right now, I feel that I’m the best fighter in the world. So there is no one person that I want to fight. It’s more, whoever they’re saying is the best, that’s who I want,” Lee stated.