"It's the same weight as my daughter" - Angela Lee on the new ONE Championship title belts

ONE Championship atomweight world champion Angela Lee talks about the new ONE Championship belt. (Image courtesy of ONE Championship)
ONE Championship atomweight world champion Angela Lee talks about the new ONE Championship belt. (Image courtesy of ONE Championship)

In the main event of ONE Championship's historic ONE X card, Angela Lee returned from a two-year hiatus to defend her title for a fifth straight time.

In perhaps the biggest danger she's been in since losing to Xiong Jing Nan at strawweight, Lee almost got knocked out with a hellacious body shot by Stamp Fairtex.

After surviving a crazy first round, Lee came back strong in the second as she went on a grappling barrage to finish Stamp via rear-naked choke.

Not only was it a satisfying win, it also won Angela Lee a shiny new ONE Championship belt. Speaking to Drake Riggs of MMA Mania, Lee spoke about the new version of the ONE Championship belt:

"[Laughs] Yeah I think, you know, it's about 20 pounds. Like, the same weight as my daughter. It's crazy, it's nice, you know. I'm glad that, you know, ONE made a change to the belt for this 10th-year anniversary. Definitely something special. A lot bigger than my previous one, but, I don't know, I have a special feeling for the original belt because you know, it was the first one that I won. But this new belt is very significant as well."

The belt does look like a grand departure from the old version that ONE had been using since they started a decade ago. It seems fitting that they created a new belt to coincide with their 10-year anniversary as they turned a new page of their ongoing legacy.


"No quit in her" - Angela Lee praises Stamp Fairtex's mettle during their fight at ONE X

It wasn't just Angela Lee who had to survive dire situations in the main event of ONE X. Stamp Fairtex also had to fend off near-fight-ending submissions before ultimately succumbing to Lee's rear naked choke.

In the same interview, the reigning ONE Championship atomweight queen was asked how surprised she was at Stamp's grit and toughness on the ground.

Stamp had to scramble out of a tight triangle choke and a fully locked-in Twister by Lee in the second round of the fight. When asked what she thought of her ONE X opponent's toughness, Lee had this to say:

"You know what, I think that she [Stamp] was really well-prepared. Like, I could see the gameplan that her camp put together for her and they were doing really well with strategizing. I think definitely she was a tough opponent. No quit in her. The Twister [submission hold] was in pretty good and she managed to just, you know, keep surviving and scrambling on the ground. Me and my team knew that that's where we would have the advantage, in the transition. Even though she would be scrambling out of it, I was one step ahead and making sure that, you know, she would just lead into my next movement."

When asked about the Twister in particular, Lee had a surprising insight:

"For the Twister, I knew I wanted to try and hit it in the fight. I've been drilling a lot but I had a feeling that she wouldn't tap to, like, 'pain' movements, like an armbar or a Twister. Because there's so much at stake in a title fight. So I knew that I had to eventually finish her with something that would be absolute like a choke."

Catch MMA Mania's full interview with Angela Lee below:

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It's quite the level of understanding that only a champion can possess. Not only was Angela Lee aware of her opponent's skills, she also understood her mentality. She knew Stamp would rather have something snap or break than tap out. So, Lee chose something like a choke to ultimately submit Stamp.

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