Angela Lee forced to withdraw from title fight against Xiong Jing Nan

Reigning ONE women's atomweight champion Angela Lee has been forced to withdraw from her upcoming showdown against ONE women's strawweight champion Xiong Jing Nan in the main event of ONE: Heart of the Lion on November 9 at at Indoor Stadium in Singapore.

Lee is aiming to make history by becoming a two-division women's champion at the age of 22. The young champion, however, has been forced out of the card after suffering a back injury four days before the fight.

Angela Lee

"I am bummed to announce that our medical team has deemed Angela Lee unfit to compete in ONE: Heart Of The Lion for this Friday November 9. As such, I have made the decision to pull Angela off the card, despite her adamance to compete still in the world title fight against Jingnan Xiong," ONE chairman Chatri Sityodtong announced on his social media.

RELATED: Angela Lee acknowledges risk in challenging Xiong Jing Nan for world strawweight title

"We all know that Angela is a warrior with an unbreakable spirit. However, she suffered a serious back injury in training last week and badly herniated a spinal disc; she was unable to walk just a few days ago. Doctors suspect that the injury originally happened last year when Angela's car flipped five times on the highway in her near-death accident. If it was up to her, she would still compete this week, even if it meant walking into the cage on crutches. In fact, she is still insisting on competing. However, safety is the #1 priority at ONE."

With Lee and Xiong Jing Nan out of the main event, the unification title showdown between ONE interim bantamweight title holder Kevin Belingon and ONE bantamweight champion Bibiano Fernandes has been bumped up into the main event. — LA, GMA News