"I found a true passion for the sport" - Adrian Lee says his love for mixed martial arts came naturally
Despite coming from a family of world-class mixed martial artists, Adrian Lee was never pressured to pursue a career in combat sports.
In fact, it was the 18-year-old phenom who chose to live up to the family name and put on the four-ounce gloves in the world's largest martial arts organization.
In an interview,with The Straits Times, Lee expressed how he was smitten by MMA after immersing himself in the sport at a young age.
The Singaporean-American athlete said his competitive nature simply took over once he developed the skills in the family gym at United MMA.
"Training has always been a part of our daily lives. But, once we started competing, I found a true passion for the sport."
In hindsight, Lee started off like any other kid just playing around the gym, mimicking his siblings Angela and Christian Lee, who went on to become ONE world champions.
Now, it's time for the youngest of the Lee brood to take his talents to the global stage against Australia's Antonio Mammarella at ONE 167 at Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
Don't miss Adrian Lee's highly-anticipated debut at ONE 167: Stamp vs Zamboanga on Prime Video on June 7. The full event will air live on US Primetime free of charge for Prime Video subscribers in North America.
Adrian Lee says double-champ brother Christian Lee took him under his wing
Another big reason behind Adrian Lee's quiet confidence is his experience training with arguably one of the best MMA fighters of this generation, which just happens to be his older brother.
Before becoming a two-division MMA world champion, Christian Lee once traversed the same path that Adrian will be embarking on.
'The Warrior' has made sure to guide his younger sibling and help him achieve his full potential. Adrian Lee, of course, is extremely grateful to have such a wonderful role model. He said in the same interview:
"I'm so grateful and lucky to have my brother who is the lightweight and welterweight champ as my training partner because he's really the top of the top."