Angela Lee says martial arts still important after retirement: “A big part of my life”

Though her time competing inside the Circle may be over, former ONE atomweight MMA world champion Angela Lee knows that martial arts will continue to play a role in her life.

It was an emotional scene at ONE Fight Night 14 last month. Angela Lee stepped inside the Circle just before the evening’s main event to announce that she would never again defend the atomweight MMA world title she has held so proudly for the last seven years.

Appearing on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani following her retirement from MMA, Angela Lee revealed that she will continue to train, but the purpose behind it will be vastly different:

“I definitely think so. It's weird, I've been a martial artist my whole life these past eight years I've been used to two or three training sessions a day, every day,” Lee said. Life is different now and for me, I still go into the gym and I'll train but it's for a different reason. It took me a while to see it in that way that I'm exercising for longevity, for my mental health, and not for a fight or a competition.”

Lee continued, saying:

“Just to have that physical outlet, for that reason, that it's an outlet. I hope to get back to a place where I can really love training like I once did. But I know there's also many other things I could explore, and maybe find a new hobby or a new physical outlet but I definitely think that after all this time, and still martial arts and MMA will still be a big part of my life.”

With Angela Lee hanging up her gloves for good, Thai sensation Stamp Fairtex is ready to pick up where ‘Unstoppable’ left off. She claimed the vacant atomweight MMA world title following a stunning performance against Ham Seo Hee at ONE Fight Night 14. With the victory, Stamp became the first-ever three-sport champion in ONE history, holding titles in Muay Thai, kickboxing, and now MMA.

If you missed any of the action or want to relive an epic night in ONE Championship history, the ONE Fight Night 14 replay can be watched anytime on demand via Amazon Prime Video in North America.