Luke Lessei
Luke “The Chef” Lessei is one of the top 5 ranked lightweights in the world’s largest fight promotion, ONE Championship. Known for his masterful blending of traditional
Muay Thai and unorthodox techniques, Lessei quickly earned his place amongst the world’s baddest strikers with legendary slugfests against big names like Smokin’ Jo Nattawut and Eddie Abasolo. The Chef’s journey to the upper echelon of professional Muay Thai, however, began a long way from the “Land of a Thousand Smiles.”
Muay Thai
6’3 (190.5 cm)
155 lbs (71 kg)
3-2-0 (#5 LW ONE FC)
D.M.A.G./Beacon MMA
Biography
Luke’s foray into combat sports began at the age of four in Dubuque, IA, USA, where his father, Dean “Lethal Legs” Lessei had established a gym called Dubuque Martial Arts Group after he retired from his own decorated career as a 3X T.B.C. heavyweight champion. The elder Lessei has produced several regional and national champions in Muay Thai and Kickboxing, so Luke had to devote himself to the “art of eight limbs” and train harder than the rest of his peers in order to stand out.
“There were times I wanted to hang out with friends or just lay around and play video games, but I couldn’t because I had to be in the gym, grinding.”
That kind of hard work and dedication started to pay off as Luke began running through the competition at local and regional Muay Thai tournaments. It’s at one such event that Lessei earned his famous moniker, “The Chef”.
After dishing out a platter of face teeps to his opponents, one of Luke’s friends made the comment, “You’re serving up those teeps like a chef!” The next few years were a montage of training, competing, and dominating tournaments like ones held by the esteemed Thai Boxing Association (a competition he won an amazing 13 times!).
Once young Luke started knocking out “grown men,” he decided to turn pro in 2020, and quickly became the Triumphant World Muay Thai Champion. After defending that title, the Chef set his sights higher and, by 2023, he was signed to an exclusive contract with the prestigious ONE Championship.
Lessei’s debut in the world’s largest fight promotion is one of legends. For only his 7'th professional fight, Luke faced one of Thailand’s finest fighters in “Smokin” Jo Nattawut, who entered the bout with 83 professional fights under his belt. Even as a 3 to 1 underdog, the Chef was confident he had the stuff to “turn this idol into a rival.” For 3 rounds, they battled it out with back-and-forth exchanges that left both men bloodied and bruised. Despite coming up short in the decision, Luke won a ton of fans around the world. “That one night changed my life forever!”
With impressive wins against Eddie Abasolo and Cody Jerome, Luke remains focused on becoming one of the best in the sport, and, one day, winning the belt on his way to becoming “the People’s Champ.”
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