Sask. MMA fighter 'Big Game' Hunter Lee has sights set on UFC
CBC
Saskatoon mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter 'Big Game' Hunter Lee is stalking his prey all the way to Florida.
Lee, a former University of Saskatchewan Huskies champion wrestler, is a professional MMA fighter with a 3-0 record since his first bout in 2022. The light heavyweight is aiming for the UFC, the sport's top promotion.
His next fight is Friday night in Tampa, Fla., with regional promoter Cage Fury Fighting Championships, which is streaming the card on UFC Fight Pass.
If Lee stays undefeated, he believes a chance to fight in the UFC is within reach.
"I'm ready right now," Lee said during an interview at the end of his training camp.
"I think two more fights, I'm looking at being 5-0 and beating a lot of tough competition. And if I can get a regional promotion belt on UFC Fight Pass, I think that'll show I'm ready to be in the UFC."
Lee, 25, is originally from Flin Flon, Man., and now lives in Saskatoon where he fights out of the Modern Martial Arts Center gym. He won two national titles and a Canada West gold medal as a university wrestler.
"I rep Saskatoon now," Lee said. "It's home."
Friday's contest pits Lee against Chris Choo, an American with a 4-2 record, in the light heavyweight division. Lee won his last fight by technical knockout.
Jesse Boldt coaches Lee and expects his fighter to easily win, even predicting another knockout victory.
"As far as opponents go, I don't think he has much to offer Hunter," Boldt said before a sparring session with Lee.
"We're not usually too surprised when Hunter comes into the ring and does really well, because we feel him in the gym. He kind of beats on all of us.… He's got crazy work ethic. Yeah, we're excited for this match-up."
More opponents have cancelled fights with Lee than fought him. Lee thinks they sign up mistaking his few fights for inexperience, then see his wrestling record and have second thoughts.
"I've had like three or four of those where guys sign a fight and go through the whole fight camp [but] then they won't get on the plane to come fight, or they cancel with an injury a week before," Lee said.
Moving to Canada from Singapore meant losing close social connections for Iris Akbar, but Akbar says the gift was in finding an affirming space with friends that became like family.
Women and children staying at Regina Transition House now have access to Santa’s workshop — a safe space where mothers can choose Christmas gifts for their children.
A man from Powell River, B.C., is thankful to be alive after a stranger helped him while he was choking at a restaurant during a visit to Whistler.
When it comes to Hamilton readers' favourite library books of 2025, romance and mysteries are in close competition.
From the Detroit Lions losing to Apple iPhones that spontaneously update, Windsorites had things that bugged them this year.
Calgary emergency rooms are “in a state of critical overcapacity” ahead of the anticipated peak of flu season — and to cope with the surge and wait-room crowding, officials are urging doctors to speed up their decisions on whether to admit patients, according to a memo obtained by CBC News.
Northern Ontario's highway system needs improvements in order to make travel safer, a highway safety advocate said.
Hundreds of thousands of used tires are piling up across Ontario as some companies responsible for tire recycling have stopped processing tires amid reduced provincial recycling regulations for tire producers, industry experts say.
People in Guelph facing homelessness will soon have a new place to go during the day.
Islanders are reminded to plan their rides ahead of holiday festivities if they plan on drinking alcohol or using cannabis.
Even before Gwen Healey Akearok began her new role as Nunavut’s Minister of Family Services, she was tuning into the Office of the Auditor General’s (OAG) hearings on the state of the Family Services department.
The racial reckoning of the COVID era saw Canada grapple with its checkered past — a process that led to statues of some foundational figures being removed, in some instances by force.
Holiday traditions are front and centre for many people at this time of year. But one Uxbridge family's Christmas tradition goes above and beyond the standard Christmas carols or holiday party.