Chen Lei, Ahmad Qais Jasoor

“Rock Man” Chen Lei, 29, is one of the undefeated mixed martial artists currently signed with ONE Championship. Recently, the fighter from Changsha, Hunan, China discussed his MMA journey and his passion for the sport.

“Mixed martial arts is so close to a real fight,” Chen stated. “I studied striking and grappling, then wanted to try it myself. I have fallen in love with it.”

Currently, Chen holds a professional MMA record of 8 wins and 0 loss. In ONE Championship, he has won four bouts, three of which were in 2017 and one in 2018.

“Mixed martial arts has given me purpose in life,” Chen shared. “I have started a new life through it.”

Chen’s determination nearly overwhelmed him when he stepped up for his first professional bout of his career. After his successful professional MMA debut, he aced seven additional bouts and finished all of his foes to date.

“I was very nervous for my first professional match, and it was hard to control myself,” Chen recalled. “I made many mistakes and almost lost, but finally submitted my opponent. When the referee raised my hand, I was so excited. That feeling is the best.”

When Chen made his ONE Championship debut at “ONE: Dynasty of Heroes” on May 26, 2017, he knocked out Jeremy “Predator” Meciaz, 26, of Indonesia via punches. On August 5, 2017, the Chinese fighter returned to the cage and submitted Saiful “The Vampire” Merican, 29, of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia via armbar at “ONE: Kings and Conquerors.”

In Chen’s two most recent bouts, he also won via knockout. He knocked out Burn “Hitman” Soriano, 32, of Ilocos Sur, Philippines via punches at “ONE: Hero’s Dream” on November 3, 2017 and “Lycanthrope” Ahmad Qais Jasoor, 28, of Kabul, Afghanistan via strikes at “ONE: Spirit of a Warrior” on June 29, 2018.

On September 8, 2018, Chen will have another opportunity to display his talents on the global stage at “ONE: Beyond the Horizon” at the Baoshan Sports Center in Shanghai, China. He will compete against “Jungle Cat” Muhammad Aiman, 23, of Seremban, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia.

Meanwhile, watch the bout between Chen and Merican here:

For more updates on ONE Championship, please visit www.onefc.com, follow us on Twitter and Instagram @ONEChampionship, and like us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/ONEChampionship.