Saturday’s ONE X event in Singapore looks increasingly like a return to pre-pandemic normalcy for ONE Championship. On Wednesday evening, local and international media flocked to the Asian martial arts promotion’s pre-fight press conference inside the host Singapore Indoor Stadium. And on Thursday, the trend continued, as fans showed up on en masse for the card’s open workouts, set between the stadium and Kallang Wave Mall, with the city’s skyline for a backdrop. It was a welcome sight for the fighters competing, including atomweight champion Angela Lee (10-2), who will defend her title against 24-year-old Thai striking specialist Stamp Fairtex (8-1) in the card’s headlining attraction. “It feels great for me,” the 25-year-old Canadian- American champion, who will be fighting for the first time since becoming a mother in April 2021, told the Post at the event. “I skipped over that whole period when there was empty stadiums and no fans, so for me, it’s just getting back into the swing of things. It’s just how I remember it. It feels great. I love the energy.” Lee was not the only fighter feeding off the festive atmosphere at Thursday’s ONE X open workouts. ONE X: ‘The Gunslinger’ John Wayne Parr gears up for final shoot-out The typically reserved ONE flyweight champion Adriano Moraes (19-3), who will defend his title against 27-year-old Japanese knockout artist Yuya Wakamatsu (15-4) at the event, was a ball of energy, ricocheting around the ring like a pinball and engaging with the crowd throughout. “I’m blessed to be healthy and to be an MMA fighter,” the 32-year-old Brazilian champion said. “Let’s go!” ONE featherweight champion Thanh Le (13-2), who is fresh off a stunning knockout win over Garry Tonon at ONE: Full Circle last month, was also back in the spotlight at the ONE X open workouts – though he will not be competing on Saturday’s card. Instead, the 36-year-old Vietnamese-American picked up the mic to co-host the open workouts alongside ring announcer Dom Lau. The champion claims the emceeing gig made him apprehensive, but you wouldn’t have known it based on the way he rose to the occasion. “I was more nervous stepping on stage for this than I have been for any of my fights,” Le told the Post after the event concluded. “I’d love to get into commentating fights,” he added. “I love watching and talking about fights, and the flow back and forth, and the martial arts side of things. If anything pops up and comes to fruition, I’d be down.” It was a sweltering afternoon in Singapore, with temperatures climbing well past the 30-degree mark – with stifling humidity to boot – but there was excitement in the air all of the same. That excitement will surely carry into Saturday’s 20-fight card, which will be ONE’s first in front of a typical pre-pandemic crowd since the crisis began. And with the Singapore government poised to further loosen restrictions come March 29, it seems as though there is nowhere to go but up.