SINGAPORE – Over a month after the sudden death of mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter Victoria Lee on Dec 26, her family continues to pay tribute to the teenager.
Younger brother Adrian, 17, made his first public tribute after her death in an Instagram post on Jan 29. Posting a photo of them as young children pulling cheeky faces, he captioned it: “Most loving person I know!”
The pair are from the Lee family, who are synonymous with Singapore-based MMA outfit One Championship.
The other siblings include Angela, 26, One’s women’s atomweight world champion and Christian, 24, who holds One’s men’s lightweight and welterweight titles.
News of Victoria’s death at age 18 in Hawaii was announced by Angela on Jan 7 and sparked an outpouring of grief and shock in the MMA world. The cause of death was not stated.
One’s chief Chatri Sityodtong said he was “heartbroken” by Lee’s death and that he would remember her “for the beautiful and precious soul that she was”.
One Championship also released a video tribute to her on Jan 13, which was also aired during a live broadcast of One Fight Night 6 on Prime Video. Victoria had been due to fight India’s Zeba Bano in Bangkok on Jan 14.
Touted as one of the most promising MMA athletes in the world, Victoria made her debut at One’s Fists of Fury event at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in February 2021, three months shy of her 17th birthday, beating Thai fighter Sunisa Srisen via a rear-naked choke before winning her next two fights, also through finishes.
Adrian, 17, is the youngest of the family and is also a rising star in the MMA world. He came out victorious in his first amateur MMA title fight held in Hawaii in December 2022, in response to which Victoria wrote that she was “super proud of (her) little bro” in her final Instagram post on Dec 18, just over a week before her death.
Adrian’s siblings all made their pro debuts with One Championship after impressive runs as amateurs. They were all coached by their father Ken Lee at their family’s United MMA Hawaii Gym in Waipahu, which is now permanently closed after Victoria’s death.
