MMA Standout Victoria Lee Dies Suddenly at 18

Rising MMA sensation Victoria Lee has passed away at the age of 18.

Victoria Lee’s older sister Angela Lee, who’s also an MMA fighter and the current ONE Championship atomweight champion, recently announced the tragic news.

She reportedly died on December 26th.

A cause of death has yet to be released.

Truly horrible news. Victoria Lee, the 18-year-old sister of ONE Championship titleholders Angela and Christian, died at 18 years old on December 26.

My heart is with all the Lee family.https://t.co/apEtuC00lY

— Nicolas Atkin (@NicoSCMP) January 7, 2023

The ONE Championship team is devastated over the tragic passing of Victoria Lee. We send our most heartfelt condolences to her family and friends at this difficult time. pic.twitter.com/EUIp8jplxN

— ONE Championship (@ONEChampionship) January 8, 2023

Angela Lee stated on Instagram:

On December 26, 2022 our family experienced something no family should ever have to go through… It is incredibly difficult to say this… Our Victoria passed away.

She has gone too soon and our family has been completely devastated since then. We miss her. More than anything in this world. Our family will never be the same. Life will never be the same.

Victoria was the most beautiful soul who ever lived. She was the best little sister in the world. The best daughter, the best granddaughter and the best godma / aunty to Ava and Alia.

We miss you so much sis. More than you could ever realize. We’re all broken. Because a piece of you was in each of us and when you left, those pieces were ripped out of us. We will never be the same.

ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong praised the rising star as the “single greatest pound-for-pound female prospect in the world.”

“I am heartbroken by Victoria Lee’s passing,” Sityodtong said Saturday.

“I first met Victoria when she was 11 years old. I watched her blossom over the years as a martial artist and a human being. I always remember thinking how wise, thoughtful, and selfless she was beyond her years.”

“Of course, she was an extraordinary martial arts prodigy even back then, but I could see that she was so much more than that. Victoria had the purest heart of gold and a brilliant mind. She looked after others before herself. She wanted to use her life to help the world. I will always remember Victoria for the beautiful and precious soul that she was,” he added.

The New York Post added:

She had a 3-0 professional record before her death. Lee made her mixed martial arts debut in 2021, defeating Sunisa Srian by rear-naked choke. She last fought in September 2021 as she balanced mixed martial arts and her studies.

Before she made the jump to MMA, Lee was a two-time Pankration champion and won Hawaii’s junior wrestling championship in 2019 and 2020.

Lee was scheduled for her next bout on January 14th.

Here are some highlights from Victoria Lee’s time in the Octagon:

🔥 Counting down the days till ONE Superstar Victoria Lee from the EVOLVE Fight Team gets in the @onechampionship cage for ONE: REVOLUTION this Friday, 24 September!⁠#ONERevolution #ONEChampionship pic.twitter.com/GYs0hUV859

— Evolve MMA (@EvolveMMA) September 22, 2021

Although Lee’s cause of death remains undisclosed, this tragedy adds to the increasingly high number of athletes to die suddenly since the COVID-19 jab rollout.

ONE Championship CEO Chatri Sityodtong previously said all fighters must be vaccinated to compete in Singapore.

ONE Championship fighters must be vaccinated to compete in Singapore; ruleset approved in multiple US states, says Chatri Sityodtong https://t.co/G10c2OO34F

— South China Morning Post (@SCMPNews) September 3, 2021

“Lee faced Victoria Souza at ONE Championship 143: Revolution on September 24, 2021,” according to Wikipedia.

ONE Championship 143: Revolution was held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore.