6 Of The Youngest Athletes To Become ONE World Champions
Since ONE Championship’s inception, the promotion has revolutionized the landscape of martial arts, offering a platform for athletes worldwide to showcase their skills on the global stage.
Over the years, several fighters have risen to prominence, defying barriers and capturing 26 pounds of gold at remarkably young ages.
Let’s take a closer look at six notable athletes who etched their names in history by becoming World Champions early in their careers.
Smilla Sundell: 17 Years Old
Smilla “The Hurricane” Sundell made history by becoming the youngest ever to claim a World Title in ONE.
Achieving this milestone at just 17 years old, she orchestrated a five-round destruction of Jackie Buntan to score a clear-cut unanimous decision at ONE 156 in April 2022, seizing the inaugural ONE Women’s Strawweight Muay Thai World Championship.
The Swedish prodigy further solidified her status by defending her title against atomweight Muay Thai queen Allycia Hellen Rodrigues with a third-round TKO at ONE Fight Night 14 in September 2023.
Next up, she’ll look to extend her reign of terror in a much-awaited encounter against Natalia “Karelian Lynx” Diachkova in the main event of ONE Fight Night 22 on May 3.
Tye Ruotolo: 20 Years Old
Tye Ruotolo has taken ONE by storm since he arrived in 2022, racking up six consecutive victories.
At 20 years old, the American phenom attained the distinction as the first-ever ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Champion, defeating Magomed Abdulkadirov by unanimous decision at ONE Fight Night 16 in November 2023.
His dominance in the division persisted as he recently triumphed over Izaak Michell at ONE Fight Night 21.
Kade Ruotolo: 19 Years Old
Alongside his twin brother, Tye, Kade Ruotolo has had an outstanding run in the world’s largest martial arts organization.
With six appearances already, the Atos Jiu-Jitsu product has consistently shown why he is one of the most formidable grapplers on the planet today.
At 19 years old, Ruotolo reached new heights by clinching the inaugural ONE Lightweight Submission Grappling World Championship against Uali Kurzhev at ONE on Prime Video 3 in October 2022.
Since then, he has triumphantly defended his crown on three occasions.
But at ONE 167 on June 7, Kade will step out of his comfort zone to test his mettle under MMA rules against Blake Cooper in a lightweight showdown.
Stamp Fairtex: 21 Years Old
Stamp Fairtex is undoubtedly the most decorated athlete to ever grace the ultimate proving grounds of martial arts.
Her journey to stardom commenced when she netted the ONE Atomweight Kickboxing World Title at age 21, beating Chuang Kai Ting via unanimous decision at ONE: KINGDOM OF HEROES in October 2018.
The Thai megastar then raised the stakes by prevailing over Janet Todd in a grueling five-round contest for the inaugural ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Championship at ONE: CALL TO GREATNESS just four months later.
She further bolstered her stature by snaring the ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Grand Prix Title, submitting Ritu “The Indian Tigress” Phogat in the tournament finale at ONE: WINTER WARRIORS in December 2021.
Her trailblazing trajectory continued as she seized the vacant ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Championship by defeating Ham Seo Hee at ONE Fight Night 14 in September 2023, achieving the feat as the first three-sport World Champion in history.
Looking forward, Stamp faces a challenging path in 2024. She stakes her throne against Denice “The Menace” Zamboanga at ONE 167 before gunning for “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan’s strawweight MMA belt at ONE 168: Denver on September 6.
Christian Lee: 20 Years Old
Just a month shy of his 21st birthday, Christian “The Warrior” Lee achieved a major milestone in his professional career at ONE: ENTER THE DRAGON in May 2019.
He stunned the world by defeating the legendary Shinya “Tobikan Judan” Aoki to capture the ONE Lightweight MMA World Title with a second-round stoppage.
The Singaporean-American sensation sustained the winning momentum by going the distance with Dagi Arslanaliev to collect the ONE Lightweight MMA World Grand Prix silver belt at ONE: CENTURY PART I five months later.
Moreover, Lee raised his profile in the all-encompassing sport by dethroning Kiamrian “Brazen” Abbasov for the ONE Welterweight MMA World Championship by fourth-round TKO at ONE on Prime Video 4 in November 2022.
Angela Lee: 19 Years Old
“Unstoppable” Angela Lee achieved what seemed impossible at a young age, becoming the first-ever ONE Women’s Atomweight MMA World Champion at 19.
Her groundbreaking victory came after she outlasted Mei “V.V” Yamaguchi across five intense rounds at ONE: ASCENT TO POWER in May 2016.
She then went on to create history with the longest championship reign in the promotion, lasting 2,703 days while defending her title five times.
Lee bid a heartfelt and emotional farewell to the sport during ONE Fight Night 14, relinquishing her throne as champion to focus on Fightstory — a mental health non-profit organization she founded in honor of her late younger sister, Victoria Lee.
