Angela Lee was in the world title picture for more than half of her storied career, but there was one fight that stood out among all of her high-profile matches in ONE Championship.
That match in question was the one in which she defended the ONE women’s atomweight MMA world title against then-future world champion Stamp Fairtex.
In an interview with ESPN, Lee said her ONE X match against Stamp at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in March 2022 was the most memorable one in her career.
Not only did Lee retain the gold, but it was also her first match since giving birth to her daughter Ava in 2021.
Lee, who has since retired from MMA, said:
“So many great ones, but I think my favorite memory or moment was coming back to defend my title after giving birth to my daughter. I gave birth to her, and 11 months later I came back, and I was in the best shape of my life, and I defended my belt, and I think for me that was very special.”
Coupled with the COVID-19 pandemic that left the world at a standstill, Lee also took her time taking care of Ava in 2021.
It wasn’t until 2022 that ‘Unstoppable’ was able to return to form and defend her strap against Stamp, who was then the ONE Atomweight MMA World Grand Prix Champion.
Although Lee was coming off a successful world title defense against ONE women’s strawweight MMA world champion Xiong Jing Nan in 2019, there were still uncertainties when she took on Stamp in her return.
Stamp even had Lee in trouble when she connected with a brutal left hook to the body midway through the first round.
Lee, however, recovered and found her footing in the second. The Singaporean-American star scored a takedown 30 seconds into the second and had Stamp under her control for the remainder of the fight.
After Stamp escaped from a triangle choke and a twister, Lee continued her ground assault and locked in a rear-naked choke that forced the Thai megastar to submit with 10 seconds remaining in the second.
Watch Lee’s entire interview below:
