It’s been over two years since Christian Lee has competed in ONE Championship. The hiatus will end on Friday, December 6, at ONE Fight Night 26. “The Warrior” will defend the ONE Lightweight MMA World Championship against Alibeg Rasulov in the main event, live on Prime Video.
Lee has not been resting during his layoff. He has been giving back to his community in Hawaii, all in the name of his late sister, Victoria. The mission to give back has fueled a new passion for making sure kids have a safe place after school’s final bell.
“I had another nonprofit business. I opened it up and called it Prodigy Community Center. The goal was to basically take kids from after school, who can’t afford training, and give them a place before the classes to do their homework, to hang out, and then to train in the classes for free. And then have a ride home if they can’t get picked up by their parents. That was the main thing that drove everything,” Lee explained to ONE.
The return of Christian Lee to defend his ONE Lightweight MMA World Title against Alibeg Rasulov is now your official main event for ONE Fight Night 26 on @primevideo! 🤩 Will the two-division king make a successful comeback on December 6?
#ONEFightNight26 | Dec 6 at 8PM… pic.twitter.com/1icRpcu5kg— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) October 28, 2024
United MMA was closed, and Lee established a new gym from scratch. Prodigy Training Center, named after his sister’s nickname, was established, and it is where Lee helped coach his brother, Adrian, ahead of his ONE debut. In full swing, Lee is still working on growing the business as a place for aspiring martial artists and hobbyists alike.
“We’re building up the gym. We’re trying to grow all the classes and get it to a point where we can not only support everyone, all of the staff and the coaches that we have on board – but then immediately turn around and give back to the community in an even bigger way than helping the kids and adults who are already training, but doing some nonprofit community work, as well,” the two-division king said.
The name of the gym carries a lot of weight, and Lee has been proud to see the name and logo on his athletes’ shirts. At ONE Fight Night 26, “The Warrior” will get his first opportunity to adorn the logo when he returns to action. It symbolizes what he still fights for in and out of the gym.
“Obviously, the name came from my sister’s nickname, and it’s just a small tribute for her in the sense of, you know, we’re continuing to go to work and just have a piece of her remembrance with us. It’s nice to see everyone walking around in the gym wearing Prodigy shirts and see Adrian going out there representing it. I’m looking forward to wearing it in my fights, as well. It’s a great meaning behind what we’re doing,” Lee detailed.
The two-division World Champion has already seen how important a performance can be to his students. After watching his brother win twice in ONE competition, he has seen the students become more inspired. At ONE Fight Night 26, “The Warrior” will try to add to that inspiration with another title defense.
“When Adrian and I go in there and compete and win, it shows them firsthand that the training and the skills that they’re learning every day really work. Leading up to Adrian’s fight, we covered a lot of the sequences that he did that led to the finish in classes. A lot of our students would say when we come back, ‘That’s exactly what you taught in class, and that’s what coach Adrian pulled off in his fight!’ I think it’s great,” Lee stated.
In the long term, Lee hopes to make Prodigy Training Center a go-to spot for the next generation of elite MMA athletes. The ONE Lightweight and Welterweight World Champion loves his role as head coach and plans to guide talent to the global stage. As a defending champion, he is the beacon of what is possible.
“Not only in my fighting career, but in my coaching career, my goal is to see our fighters turn pro, do well, and then eventually make it into ONE Championship. And soon, we’ll have a whole team of Prodigy representing on one of the ONE cards,” the returning champ said.
ONE Fight Night 26 airs live on Friday, December 6, on Prime Video. The action begins at 8 p.m. EST/5 p.m. PST. The event is free for all Amazon Prime members in the U.S. and Canada.
