Angela Lee

Angela Lee
Born Angela Lee Sun Ju
(1996-07-08) July 8, 1996
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Nickname(s) Unstoppable[1]
Residence Waipahu, Hawaii, United States[2]
Nationality Singaporean[3]
Ethnicity Chinese and Korean
Height 5 ft 4 in (1.63 m)
Weight 114 lb (51.7 kg; 8.1 st)
Division Strawweight
Atomweight
Style Pankration, Taekwondo, BJJ, Muay Thai, Folkstyle Wrestling
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of Tanjong Katong, Singapore
Waipahu, Hawaii, United States
Team Evolve MMA (Singapore)
United MMA (United States)[4]
Rank 1st degree black belt in Taekwondo
Black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu[5]
Years active 2015–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total 9
Wins 9
By submission 7
By decision 2
Losses 0
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Angela Lee Sun Ju[6] (Chinese: 李胜珠, born July 8, 1996) is a Canadian-born Singaporean mixed martial artist of Chinese and Korean heritage.

Born in Vancouver to a Chinese-Singaporean father and a Korean mother, Lee moved to Hawaii at age 7. Her parents are both martial artists, so she began training at a young age and competing at age 6.[7] Her younger brother Christian (born June 21, 1998 in Vancouver) is also an MMA fighter and her two other younger siblings, Victoria and Adrian (born in Waipahu), also train in martial arts.

In 2011, Angela Lee won her division at the USA Amateur pankration national championships, and the next year, she claimed her division at the World Pangration Athlima Federation world championships in Greece.[8] On May 5, 2016, she became the youngest person to ever win a world title in MMA by defeating Mei Yamaguchi to win the ONE Women's Atomweight (115 lbs) Title.[9] As of June 2017, Fight Matrix ranks her #12 female MMA Strawweight (105.1-115 lbs) in the world.[10] Lee was awarded her Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt on February 9, 2018, by third-degree black belt Mike Fowler and her father Ken Lee, who is also a black belt.[11]

Mixed martial arts career

In 2014, Lee made her amateur debut, and in November of that year she won an amateur title by beating Audrey Perkins at Destiny MMA: Na Koa 7 in Honolulu to become the Destiny MMA strawweight champion.

ONE Championship

Lee signed with ONE Championship in 2014 and made her promotional debut at ONE Championship 28: Warrior's Quest on May 22, 2015, submitting Aya Saber with an arm bar in the opening round.[12]

Following the win, Lee dropped out of college in Hawaii (she was studying business) and moved to Singapore to join Evolve MMA.[13][14] In her next fight, she used a rear naked choke hold to beat Mona Samir at ONE Championship: Odyssey of Champions on September 27, 2015, in the first round.

Lee's third professional fight was at ONE Championship 33: Pride of Lions on November 13, 2015[15] and she submitted Natalie Gonzales Hills with a twister in the opening round in what commentators described as a potential submission of the year contender.[16][17][18] She subsequently won the 2015 WMMA Press Award for Submission of the Year.[19]

Next, she faced Lena Tkhorevska at ONE Championship 36: Spirit of Champions on December 11, 2015[20] and won with a rear naked choke in the second round. Lee's first fight of 2016 was against Rebecca Heintzman at ONE Championship 39: Tribe of Warriors on February 20, 2016, and she won with a second round neck crank.

Lee's reward for submitting her first five opponents was a shot at the inaugural ONE Championship Atomweight Women's Title against Japanese veteran Mei Yamaguchi at ONE Championship 42: Ascent to Power on May 6, 2016.[21][22][23] Winning the fight would make her the youngest-ever MMA world champion.[24][25]

Lee won the fight by unanimous decision to become the inaugural ONE Women's Atomweight Champion,and received a $68,200 SGD bonus for her performance.[26] The MMA media described her fight with Yamaguchi as a Fight of the Year contender.[27][28][29] She subsequently signed a new contract with ONE Championship. Commentators speculated that her new contract made Lee the highest paid teenager in the history of MMA, male or female.[30][31]

On March 11, 2017, Angela Lee defeated Jenny Huang of Taiwan and retained the Atomweight World Championship title. On May 27, 2017, she was successful in her second title defense against Istela Nunes of Brazil.

On November 8, 2017, Chatri Sityodtong announced that Angela Lee was involved in a serious car accident after she fell asleep at the wheel of her car.[32] She managed to survive the incident with a concussion and minor burns. Lee's bout with Mei Yamaguchi that was scheduled for November 24 has been rescheduled to May 18, 2018[33] at One Championship Unstoppable Dreams in Singapore[34]. Lee won via unanimous decision.

Lee is expected to face reigning flyweight champion Jingnan Xiong at ONE Championship 78: Heart of the Lion on November 9, 2018 in an attempt to become the first female two-division champion in ONE FC.[35]

Championships and accomplishments

Amateur pankration

  • World Pangration Athlima Federation World Championships:
    • 2012 Agon (full contact) Girls, 16-17 yrs, 58 kg - Champion.[36]
    • 2012 Semi (semi contact) Girls, Juniors, 58 kg - Champion.[37]

Scholastic wrestling

  • HHSAA 2013, 121 lbs. girls wrestling champion.[38]

Mixed martial arts

Mixed martial arts record

Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 9-0 Mei Yamaguchi Decision (unanimous) ONE Championship 73: Unstoppable Dreams May 19, 2018 5 5:00 Singapore Indoor Stadium Defended the ONE Championship Women's Atomweight Title.
Win 8-0 Istela Nunes Submission (anaconda choke) ONE Championship 55: Dynasty of Heroes May 26, 2017 2 2:18 Kallang, Singapore Defended the ONE Championship Women's Atomweight Title.
Win 7-0 Jenny Huang Submission (punches) ONE Championship 53: Warrior Kingdom March 11, 2017 3 3:37 Impact, Muang Thong Thani Defended the ONE Championship Women's Atomweight Title.
Win 6-0 Mei Yamaguchi Decision (unanimous) ONE Championship 42: Ascent to Power May 6, 2016 5 5:00 Singapore Indoor Stadium Won the ONE Championship Women's Atomweight (115lb) Title.
Win 5-0 Rebecca Heintzman Submission (neck crank) ONE Championship 39: Tribe of Warriors February 20, 2016 2 1:08 Jakarta, Indonesia
Win 4-0 Lena Tkhorevska Submission (rear-naked choke) ONE Championship 36: Spirit of Champions Dec 11, 2015 2 3:26 Manila, Philippines
Win 3-0 Natalie Gonzales Hills Submission (twister) ONE Championship 33: Pride of Lions Nov 13, 2015 1 2:24 Singapore Indoor Stadium
Win 2-0 Mona Samir Submission (rear-naked choke) ONE Championship 31: Odyssey of Champions Sep 27, 2015 1 3:49 Jakarta, Indonesia
Win 1-0 Aya Saber Submission (armbar) ONE Championship 27: Warrior's Quest May 22, 2015 1 1:43 Singapore Indoor Stadium

References

  1. ↑ "Angela Lee Profile". Sherdog. Retrieved May 20, 2016.
  2. ↑ https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/mma-angela-lee-says-it-is-a-miracle-she-survived-mondays-car-accident
  3. ↑ Angela Lee profile at ONE Championship
  4. ↑ "Singapore MMA star Angela Lee is hungry to be a champion". The Straits Times. April 30, 2016. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  5. ↑ "Angela Lee - Evolve MMA Singapore | Asia's #1 Mixed Martial Arts Gym". evolve-mma.com. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  6. ↑ Boarding pass from Angela Lee's instagram, retrieved March 8, 2017
  7. ↑ Neil Davidson. "Vancouver-born fighter (Unstoppable) Angela Lee goes after world title". The Canadian Press.
  8. ↑ Kyle Nagel. "Fight Path: For ONE Championship 27's Angela Lee, surprise at-home attacks were normal". MMA Junkie.
  9. ↑ Teng Kiat. "MMA star Angela Lee becomes youngest-ever world champion". Yahoo.
  10. ↑ "Fight Matrix Current MMA Rankings » Women's Strawweight". www.fightmatrix.com. Retrieved April 21, 2017.
  11. ↑ "With his family beside him, Christian Lee is marching toward a shot at the featherweight title". The Body Lock. 2018-03-06. Retrieved 2018-03-08.
  12. ↑ Brian Knapp. "Shinya Aoki Keeps Lightweight Title, Decisions Koji Ando at One Championship 27". Sherdog.
  13. ↑ Sanjay Nair. "Mixed Martial Arts: Angela Lee quits school aiming to be Singapore's 1st world champion". Straits Times.
  14. ↑ James Goyder. "Angela Lee Switched Her Training to Singapore in Search of One Championship Gold". MMA Weekly.
  15. ↑ Saheli Roy Choudhury. "Asia's female MMA star: 'I finish fights very quickly...'". CNBC.
  16. ↑ MMA Insider. "Historic twister submission in ONE Championship cage by Singaporean MMA star Angela Lee". Yahoo! Sports.
  17. ↑ FO Staff. "One Championship's Angela Lee pulls off twister submission". Fighters Only.
  18. ↑ Neil Davidson. "Angela 'Unstoppable' Lee, Vancouver-Born MMA Athlete, Turns Heads In Asia". The Canadian Press.
  19. ↑ "Angela Lee Takes WMMA Press 2015 Newcomer & Submission Award". Wombat Sports. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  20. ↑ Mick Hammond. "Friday's Fight is Angela Lee's Next Step Towards ONE CHAMPIONSHIP Title". MMA Weekly.
  21. ↑ Jim Edwards. "Angela Lee looking to make history and pioneer women's MMA at ONE: Ascent To Power". The Independent.
  22. ↑ LIM SAY HENG. "Angela Lee eyes first ONE Championship women's title". The New Paper.
  23. ↑ James Edwards. "Angela Lee to square off with Mei Yamaguchi to crown ONE Women's atomweight world champion". Daily Mirror.
  24. ↑ "Youngest-Ever MMA Champion Could Come Out of Singapore". Bloomberg.
  25. ↑ Lee U-Wen. "Angela Lee's ready for the fight of her life". Business Times.
  26. ↑ "MMA: Angela Lee awarded $68,200 bonus following title victory". The New Paper.
  27. ↑ Brian Knapp. "Angela Lee Takes Atomweight Title in FOTY Contender at One Championship 42". Sherdog.
  28. ↑ Alexander K. Lee. "Watch: 19-year-old Angela Lee wins ONE title in thriller". The Score.
  29. ↑ Jay Russell. "2016 Fight Of The Year Candidate: Angela Lee vs Mei Yamaguchi (Video)". Vendetta Fighter.
  30. ↑ James Goyder. "NEWLY CROWNED ONE ATOMWEIGHT CHAMP ANGELA LEE SIGNS HUGE NEW CONTRACT". MMA Weekly.
  31. ↑ Chua Siang Yee. "Mixed martial arts: Lucrative new deal for Angela Lee". Straits Times.
  32. ↑ "Chatri Sityodtong". www.facebook.com. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
  33. ↑ http://www.straitstimes.com/sport/mma-angela-lee-wants-to-be-first-dual-division-womens-champion-in-one-championship
  34. ↑ https://onefc.com/events/unstoppable-dreams
  35. ↑ Alexander K. Lee (October 2, 2018). "Angela Lee aims to become ONE's first two-division female champ, Bibiano Fernandes announced for Nov. 9 show". mmafighting.com.
  36. ↑ "2012 WORLDPANGRATION CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS AGON". www.worldpangration.net. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  37. ↑ "2012 WORLDPANGRATION CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS PANGRATION IMIEPAFIS". www.worldpangration.net. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  38. ↑ "Wrestling - HHSAA Girls Final Results - Hawaii High School Athletic Association (HHSAA)". www.sportshigh.com. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  39. ↑ "ONE Championship's Fight Of The Year 2016". ONE Championship. Retrieved March 7, 2017.
  40. ↑ "Angela Lee Takes WMMA Press 2015 Newcomer & Submission Award". Wombat Sports. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  41. ↑ "World MMA Awards nominees set with new 'analyst,' 'MMA programming' categories". MMA Junkie. Retrieved May 19, 2016.
  42. ↑ "MMAjunkie's 'Fight of the Month' for May: A teen sensation shines in a back-and-forth war". MMAjunkie. June 4, 2016. Retrieved March 7, 2017.

Further reading

  • Yee, Chua Siang (May 1, 2016). "Singapore MMA star Angela Lee is hungry to be a champion". The Straits Times. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
  • "Female MMA World Champion Angela Lee Is Smashing Through Sport's Glass Ceiling". Yahoo! Sports Singapore. May 15, 2016. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
  • "Angela Lee es la primera campeona átomo de ONE Championship". Vice (in Spanish). May 6, 2016. Retrieved May 18, 2016.
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