It may seem remarkable that at just 16 years old Victoria Lee is preparing to make her professional mixed martial arts debut at ONE Championship’s Fists of Fury on Friday.
It is perhaps less surprising considering who her two older siblings are: ONE world champions Angela Lee (atomweight) and Christian Lee (lightweight).
Hailing from Hawaii but fighting under the Singapore flag — her father’s country of origin — Victoria caused a stir late last year when she signed on with ONE Championship despite her youth. It has not taken long for her professional debut as she faces Thailand’s Sunisa Srisen in the atomweight division at the Singapore Indoor Stadium.
The agenda for her previous visits to Singapore would have centred around catching up with relatives and devouring the local cuisine that she loves.
The fact that, this time around so far, she has not had a taste of her favourite chicken rice, bak kut teh and laksa — dishes that would strike fear in any athletes’ coaching team — highlights how this trip is strictly business.
“I’m feeling so many mixed emotions this whole fight week,” she told ESPN. “But [mostly] I’m so excited and I feel really ready to make my debut … I’ve been coming here since I was a little kid, we have so much family here, so I cannot wait to put on a show for the Singapore fans and honestly, there’s no other place I would want to debut.”
Given she was not even in her teens when her sister Angela won her title in 2016, Victoria has been entrenched in the MMA scene for as long as she can remember and has already displayed prodigious talent.
Two years ago, she claimed a gold medal at the IMMAF (International Mixed Martial Arts Federation) Youth World Championships — an achievement she identifies as when she made her mind up to go down this path.
Of course, it also helps that she has had two excellent examples at close hand to follow.
“My brother and sister have both been extremely helpful throughout this whole fight camp and even during fight week. I call them and they help me out a lot,” Lee said. “They’ve been in my shoes and I know I can go to them and they really provide so much help to me. And even prior to fight week, throughout the whole camp, being able to watch them train, it’s really motivating for me.”
Having famous family names to live up to can often be as much of a curse as it is a gift but, showing maturity beyond her years, Victoria wants to embrace both sides of the coin.
“I’m extremely proud to be recognised as Angela and Christian Lee’s little sister,” she added. “But I also excited that this is the start of my journey — making my debut — and I can’t wait to make a name for myself as well.”