Eddie Alvarez injured, replaced by Christian Lee in ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Championship Final
ONE Championship (ONE), announced that current ONE Lightweight World Champion Christian “The Warrior” Lee of Singapore has replaced Eddie “The Underground King” Alvarez in the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Championship Final. Alvarez was forced to pull out of the tournament after suffering an injury during training. Lee will face Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev of Turkey at ONE: CENTURY 世紀.
Chatri Sityodtong, Chairman and CEO of ONE Championship, stated: “Unfortunately, Eddie Alvarez has been forced to pull out of his scheduled bout against Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev at ONE: CENTURY due to injury. I know Eddie is a true warrior and would have loved to compete under any circumstance, but training injuries are part of the game. I wish Eddie a complete recovery, and I know he will be back better than ever. ONE Superstar Eduard Folayang had agreed to step up on short notice, but visa issues made it impossible. Luckily, ONE Lightweight World Champion Christian Lee has agreed to step into the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Championship Final to face Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev. This bout promises non-stop action for all the fans in Tokyo and around the world!”
Christian Lee, ONE Lightweight World Champion, stated: “I received the call that Eddie Alvarez was injured and they needed a last minute replacement to fight Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev. Today, the fight is booked and I will be stepping into the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Championship Final. My ONE Lightweight World Title will not be on the line. However, we will be fighting for the Grand Prix title. I believe a true champion should be ready to fight anyone at any time. I am more than happy to share this card alongside my sister (Angela Lee), the champion! You do not want to miss this event.”
Lee recently made headlines when he knocked out Japanese legend Shinya Aoki at ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON to capture the ONE Lightweight World Championship. At 21-years of age, Lee is the youngest male mixed martial arts World Champion from a major organization. He owns a professional record of 12-3, with all 12 of his victories coming by way of spectacular finish.
Arslanaliev, on the other hand, is an impressive 8-1 so far in his professional career, with all eight of his victories also ending within the distance. “Dagi” is currently riding a four-bout win streak, defeating top lightweights Ev Ting and Amir Khan to reach the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Championship Final.
This bout will be for the ONE Lightweight World Grand Prix Championship.
ONE: CENTURY 世紀 takes place live from the Ryogoku Kokugikan in Tokyo, Japan on Sunday, October 13, and is the single greatest world championship martial arts event in the last 100 years. With 28 World Champions featured across various martial arts, ONE: CENTURY 世紀 is also the first martial arts event in history to host two full-scale World Championship events on the same day.
ONE: CENTURY 世紀 features World Championship title bouts, World Grand Prix Championship Finals, and World Champion versus World Champion match-ups. Part I of ONE: CENTURY 世紀 will be broadcast live in the United States via TNT and B/R Live. Part II in the evening, will be broadcast live across more than 140 countries worldwide and streamed to 2.6 billion potential viewers through the world’s largest television networks.
Part I of ONE: CENTURY 世紀 starts from 9:00 a.m. JST (October 13) / 8:00 p.m. EST (October 12). Part II starts from 5:00 p.m. JST (October 13) / 4:00 a.m. EST (October 13).
