UFC on ESPN+ 24: Edgar vs. Korean Zombie Full Preview

In 2019, UFC hosted 42 MMA events across the world. They touched down in well established markets like New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Brazil and more, but they also visited growing markets like Denmark, Mexico and Singapore. In the final event of the year, and decade, UFC heads to Korea for the second time in its history.

The country has a niche MMA market, including regional promotions like ROAD FC and Angel’s Fighting Championship. No doubt they have produced prominent names in MMA, including the “Stun Gun” Dong Hyun Kim, A Sol Kwon and Seo Hee Ham. Arguably the most well-known however is Chan Sung Jung, better known as “The Korean Zombie.” After serving his mandatory military time in South Korea, Jung started his second UFC run in 2017. Now 2-1 in his campaign, he goes up against Frankie Edgar in the main event of UFC Busan.

Live from the Sajik Arena (사직실내체육관), in Busan (부산시), Korea (한국), UFC concludes it’s action-packed 2019 with UFC on ESPN+ 23. Starting at the ripe time of 2AM EST, the prelims for UFC Busan features seven bouts.

Bout 1: Heili Alateng (알라탕 헬리) (13-7-1) vs. Ryan Benoit (라이언 브누아) (10-5) (Bantamweight)

In the first bout of the show, Ryan Benoit will make a return to the UFC after a two-year layoff to face Heili Alateng. Benoit is 3-3 in the UFC, being absent since 2017, where he defeated Ashkan Mokhatarian with a head kick. Alateng is familiar to Korea, having been a frequent fighter in ROAD FC prior to being scouted by the UFC. He won his UFC debut against Danaa Batgerel back in August, going the distance with the Mongolian fighter.

Bout 2: Amanda Lemos (아만다 레모스) (6-1-1) vs. Miranda Granger (미란다 그레인저) (7-0) (Flyweight)

Similar to the first fight of the evening, Amanda Lemos comes back from an extensive break to face Miranda Granger in this fight. Lemos last fought in 2017, losing to Leslie Smith. That was Lemos’ first fight in the UFC, attempting to bounce back from whatever negative momentum still is there from the dated loss. Granger got her debut jitters out of the way in August, getting a win over Hannah Goldy. Granger had previously fought in regional promotion CFFC. She has stayed undefeated throughout her professional and amateur career.

Bout 3: Said Nurmagomedov (사이드 누르마고메도프) (13-1) vs. Raoni Barcelos (라오니 바르셀로스) (14-1) (Bantamweight)

In a fight that feels buried deep down this card, up-and-coming Said Nurmagomedov and Raoni Barcelos are pitted against each other in a bantamweight bout. Nurmagomedov is 2-0 in the UFC, prevailing over Justin Scoggins and Ricardo Ramos. Barcelos is 3-0, having recently defeated Carlos Huachin via punches.

Bout 4: Alexandre Pantoja (21-4) (알렉산드레 판토자) vs. Matt Schnell (14-4) (맷 슈넬) (Flyweight)

Matt Schnell took a little time to get on his feet in the UFC. He lost to Tim Elliott on The Ultimate Fighter Season 24, then lost two times on other shows. But, in late 2017, he snapped his losing streak and started what is now a four-fight winning streak. Attempting to move it to five, Schnell goes up against Alexandre Pantoja. “The Cannibal” most recently lost to Deiveson Figueiredo via decision at UFC 240, breaking a three-fight winning streak he had before. Pantoja has a solid 5-2 record in the UFC.

Bout 5: Omar Morales (오마르 모랄레스) (8-0) vs. Dong Hyun Ma (마동현) (16-10-3) (Lightweight)

The first Korean fighter on the card, Dong Hyun Ma, has a tall order: end Omar Morales’ undefeated streak. Morales is a Dana White’s Contender Series winner, making his debut on this card. He has also fought in Bellator in the past, taking out Troy Nawrocki in under a minute at Bellator 204. Ma has fought in the UFC since 2015, going 3-4 in the promotion. “The Maestro” will walk into this fight on a two-fight losing streak, recently getting stopped by Scott Holtzman in August.

Bout 6: Suman Mokhtarian (수만 모크타리안) (8-1) vs. Seung Woo Choi (최승우) (7-3) (Featherweight)

As the prelims near their end, two fighters will compete who have never tasted victory in the UFC. Suman Mokhatarian lost in The Ultimate Fighter Season 27, and most recently lost in the first round to Sodiq Yusuff. Korean fighter Seung Woo Choi debuted earlier this year, losing to Movsar Evloev and Gavin Tucker. He had previously been successful in Korean promotion TFC.

Bout 7: Ciryl Gane (시릴 가네) (5-0) vs. Tanner Boser (태너 보저) (17-5-1) (Heavyweight)

In the featured fight of the preliminary card, undefeated Ciryl Gane faces Tanner Boser. Gane debuted earlier this year, prevailing over Raphael Pessoa and Dontale Mayes. He had previously fought in Canadian promotion TKO. Boser won his UFC debut two months back, going the distance against Daniel Spitz. Before then, he had competed many times in ACB.

Bout 8: Kyung Ho Kang (강경호) (16-8) vs. Pingyuan Liu (리우 핑유안) (15-5) (Bantamweight)

Kicking off the main card, “Mr. Perfect” Kyung Ho Kang will face Pingyuan Liu. Coming from recognized Korean gym “Team MAD,” Kang has been a part of the UFC since 2013. A win at this show would give him a three-fight winning streak. That would make a three-way tie with his two other three-fight winning streaks for most consecutive wins in his career. But that’s looking quite ahead of time. First, he has to defeat Liu, who is no walk-through opponent. While he recently lost to Jonathan Martinez in July, the fight ended his 10-fight winning streak which dates back to his career in WLF.

Bout 9: Jun Yong Park (박준용) (10-4) vs. Marc-Andre Barriault (마크-안드레 바리올트) (11-3) (Middleweight)

The next fight sees Jun Yong Park and Marc-Andre Barriault battle for their first win in the promotion. Park lost his debut to Anthony Hernandez in August, getting caught in an anaconda choke in the second minute. Barriault lost twice this year, more recently in a split decision to Krzysztof Jotko. He wrapped up a six-fight undefeated stint in TKO before being signed by the UFC.

Bout 10: Da Un Jung (정다운) (12-2) vs. Mike Rodriguez (10-4) (마이크 로드리게스) (Light Heavyweight)

Following a strong debut in August from Da Un Jung, he returns on this card to face Mike Rodriguez. Jung’s UFC debut saw him choke Khadis Ibragimov to win the fight. He had previously fought in many promotions, mainly Japanese promotion HEAT. Rodriguez recently lost to John Allan via decision, making him 1-2 in the promotion. He found himself in the UFC after getting a stoppage victory in the first season of Dana White’s Contender Series.

Bout 11: Doo Ho Choi (최두호) (14-3) vs. Charles Jourdain (찰스 조르단) (9-2) (Featherweight)

A couple of fights after gym-mate Kyung Ho Kang fights, Doo Ho Choi will be put up against Charles “Air” Jourdain in a featherweight class. Choi has been out of the spotlight lately, recently losing to Jeremy Stephens via punches in early 2018. Before then, his most recent fight was a loss to Cub Swanson in 2016. Attempting to break his streak, “The Korean Superboy” will be put up against Jourdain, who lost in his UFC debut against Des Green back in May. Coincidentally, like many other fighters on this card, Jourdain fought frequently in Canadian promotion TKO before being signed to the UFC.

Bout 12: Volkan Oezdemir (볼칸 우즈데미르) (16-4) v.s Aleksandar Rakic (알렉산더 라키치) (12-1) (Light Heavyweight)

The co-main event of the show sees light heavyweight contender Aleksandar Rakic get put up against one of the weight classes gatekeepers, Volkan Oezdemir. Rakic is 4-0 since debuting in the UFC, more recently getting a win over Jimi Manuwa in under a minute due to a head kick. Oezdemir recently put an ending to a three-fight losing streak, stopping Ilir Latifi in two rounds. To be absolutely fair, Oezdemir’s losses came against title challengers like Daniel Cormier, Anthony Smith and Dominick Reyes. Whether he will allow Rakic to add his name to the list of winners will be seen on Saturday.

Bout 13: Chan Sung Jung (정찬성) (15-5) vs. Frankie Edgar (프랭키 에드가) (23-7-1) (Featherweight)

The main event of the evening sees Chan Sung Jung, or, “The Korean Zombie” face Frankie Edgar in a five-round fight. This matchup only came together in recent weeks, as Jung’s original opponent was Brian Ortega. He pulled out of the fight recently however, citing a torn ACL taking him out of action. Edgar stepped up to the plate, and here we are. Jung left the UFC limelight in 2014 to undergo two years of military service in Korea. He returned in 2017, stopping Dennis Bermudez in under three minutes with punches. His first lost in his recent run came against Yair Rodriguez, who landed a literal last-second elbow to knock Jung out in a five-round bout. Jung bounced back however, recently defeating Renato Moicano in just under a minute with strikes.

Edgar’s last fight was for the Featherweight Championship. While he went all 25 minutes with now-former champion Max Holloway, he did not prevail. Before then, he beat Cub Swanson. He was originally slated to face Jung in 2018, but was replaced due to a torn bicep. Edgar is one of the most experienced fighters in UFC’s history, with a record of 17-7-1 in the promotion.

After this event, UFC will be absent from events for four weeks. When returning, UFC will present UFC 246. Currently scheduled to headline the card is Conor McGregor and Donald Cerrone in a five-round non-championship fight. In the meantime however, there will most certainly still be MMA. Bellator will debut in Japan on the 28th, with Fedor Emelianenko and Rampage Jackson main eventing the card. New Year’s Eve will have a double header with RIZIN in Japan and PFL having their grand finals in New York. ONE Championship will also hold a big card in Thailand to kick off the new year’s tour of MMA events.

UFC on ESPN+ 15: Andrade vs. Zhang Full Report

It was a rare early morning of UFC on the east, as the top MMA promotion travelled to Shenzhen, China for UFC on ESPN+ 15. In the main event of the card, Weili Zhang attempted to become the first-ever Chinese UFC Champion, facing Jessica Andrade, who got her belt by defeating Rose Namajunas at UFC 237 back in May. Also on the card is tons of Chinese and Asian MMA talent and a real focus on newcomers to the promotion on the undercard.

Bout 1: Lara Procopio (6-0) vs. Karol Rosa (11-3) (Bantamweight)

Kicking off the evening of fights was an all Brazilian competition between Lara Procopio and Karol Rosa. Rosa was landing good jabs early on. Procopio warmed up more in the later minutes of the first round, landing solid punches. Procopio shot for a takedown at the end of the first round but couldn’t secure it. Rosa continued to successfully defend takedowns through the second round. The pace of striking that they had in the first round carried through the whole fight. In the third round, Rosa landed a right hook which dropped Procopio. Rosa wasn’t able to finish the fight, standing back up shortly after. The fight went the distance, two of the scorecards giving Karol Rosa her 12th professional victory (29-28 Procopio, 30-27 Rosa & 29-28 Rosa)

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Procopio	10	9	9	28
Rosa	9	10	10	29

Bout 2: Danaa Batgerel (6-1) vs. Alatengheili (12-7-1) (Bantamweight)

Staying in the bantamweight class, two newcomers in Danaa Batgerel and Alatengheili battled. Both fighters had solid punches early on, although it was Alatengheili who was landing better combinations. Alatengheili had another great string of punches in the final minute of the first round, with Batgerel backpedalling. The second round saw Batgerel be the more aggressive fighter. Batgerel also had a good opening minute of the third round. Alatengheili landed the first takedown of the fight, grabbing onto a leg and not letting go, despite being kneed and punched on the way down. While having his opponent on his back, Batgerel continued to pour on strikes, throwing tons of elbows. Batgerel got the top position but lost it shortly after. Alatengheili threw punches until the round ran out of time. Going to the scorecards, it was Alatengheili who walked away with the win (29-27, 29-27 & 29-27).

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Batgerel	9	10	10	29
Alatengheili	10	9	9	28

Bout 3: Thiago Moises (12-3) vs. Damir Ismagulov (18-2) (Lightweight)

The third bout of the evening was a lightweight clash between Thiago Moises and Damir Ismagulov. The first round was pretty even until Moises was dropped by punches in the final minute. Standing over a grounded Moises, Ismagulov threw some more punches before the round concluded. Moises tried for the first takedown of the fight in the second round but was refused. Moises had some good punches late in the second round. Ismagulov failed to get a takedown in the final minute of the second round. The final round was expectedly the slowest of the three, with no real huge moments from either fighter. After the fight ended, Ismagulov did push-ups in the octagon. All three judges saw Damir Ismagulov as the clear winner (30-26, 30-27 & 30-27).

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Moises	9	9	9	27
Ismagulov	10	10	10	30

Bout 4: Khadis Ibragimov (8-0) vs. Da Un Jung (11-2) (Light Heavyweight)

Continuing on the prelims, the next fight saw Khadis Ibragimov put his undefeated streak on the line against Da Un Jung. Ibragimov was coming forward with tons of punches in the first minute of the fight, with Jung not really answering back with anything. He laid off the pressure after the flurry which seemingly didn’t do much damage to Jung. Ibragimov would come forward with wailing punches many more times in the first round, completely out-striking Jung. Ibragimov got a bad cut around his nose as the first round was closing out. The fighters were quite fatigued come the second round but were still trading some hard punches. In the absence of Ibragimov’s crazy flurries of punches, Jung landed more punches in this round. The mouthpiece of Jung fell out many times in the second round. As the round was wrapping up, Ibragimov got top position on the ground. Ibragimov shot for a takedown early in the final round. Ibragimov landed a takedown. When they stood up against the cage, Jung put in a guillotine that made Ibragimov tap out. Da Un Jung brought his victory tally up to a dozen, also giving Ibragimov his first pro loss.

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Ibragimov	10	9
Jung	8	10

Bout 5: Andre Soukhamthath (13-7) vs. Sumudaerji (10-4) (Bantamweight)

In the third bantamweight fight of the evening, Andre Soukhamthath fought Sumudaerji. Halfway through the first round, Soukhamthath shot for a takedown but instead stayed standing up against the cage. While in the position you could hear Soukhamthath try to tell the ref that his glove was being grabbed. Sumudaerji had solid punches throughout the round. In-between rounds, Soukhamthath claimed he broke his left hand. Staying in stand-up throughout the second round, with Sumudaerji showcasing his ability to come in with strikes then avoid a counter-punch. In the final round, Sumudaerji landed a big leg sweep to get the top position. While in the position he threw some elbows. The fight went the full three rounds, with the crowd giving quite the ovation as it ended. With some very decisive scorecards, Sumudarji walked away with the victory (30-26, 30-26 & 30-25).

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Soukhamthath	9	9	8	26
Sumudaerji	10	10	10	30

Bout 6: Anthony Hernandez (7-1) vs. Jun Yong Park (10-3) (Middleweight)

In the featured preliminary bout of the show, Jun Yong Park faced Anthony Hernandez in a middleweight contest. This was the debut fight for Park, while Hernandez attempted to bounce back from his debut loss. Park had Hernandez backed up against the cage and was landing good punches, but Hernandez shot for a takedown to stop the combination. Hernandez took down Park many times, but Park kept getting back up. Hernandez had a good series of punches as the first round ended. In the second round, Park was putting together some good punches. Hernandez scored a takedown, then but Park got up and tried for a standing guillotine. Hernandez fought out of it and then got a slam takedown, although they got up shortly after. Hernandez put together a combination of punches and a knee before getting a takedown and getting Park’s back. Hernandez landed tons of punches on the ground before putting in an anaconda choke which made Park tap out.

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Hernandez	10
Park	9

Bout 7: Mizuki (13-5) vs. Wu Yanan (10-2) (Flyweight)

Kicking off the main card, Japanese fighter Mizuki made her UFC debut against Wu Yanan, who got her last in via a first-round armbar. When the fight started you could tell Wu had a clear height advantage. In the first round, Wu had some pretty solid punches. Mizuki seemed to be the more controlling fighter in the second round, although Wu was the only fighter utilizing leg kicks. In the third round, Mizuki defended a takedown attempt, keeping the fight in stand-up. While nobody was getting shook hard by punches, Wu was out-striking throughout the fight. The fight went all fifteen minutes, with Mizuki getting a split decision victory (29-28 Wu, 29-28 Mizuki & 29-28 Mizuki).

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Mizuki	9	10	9	28
Wu	10	9	10	29

Bout 8: Derrick Krantz (24-11) vs. Song Kenan (14-5) (Welterweight)

Moving up to the welterweight division, two experienced UFC fighters in Derrick Krantz and Song Kenan fought. The crowd was on fire at this point, doing a chant as this fight was starting up. Kenan seemingly had better strikes in the first round. Kenan landed an amazing combination, faking a flying knee then landing a head kick right after. While Song had a guillotine choke on, Krantz landed a slam takedown. Krantz took side position, then transitioned into half guard. Song was able to flip the script on the ground, taking the back of Krantz, although it was short-lived. Krantz went back into the top position in half guard with over a minute left in the round. Krantz put in a guillotine when they stood up against the cage, although Song escaped. Krantz stayed mostly in control until the second round ended. Early in the final round, Krantz was in trouble as Song was putting on the pressure and coming forward with tons of punches. Stopping the momentum, Krantz got another takedown. Song was able to escape the position within a reasonable amount of time. In seemingly the same situation as before, Song landed clean strikes before Krantz got another takedown. They got back up with under two minutes left in the fight. Song was still putting on the pressure, although it was clear both fighters were quite tired. The fight turned to scorecards to find a winner, with Song Kenan earning the unanimous decision victory (29-28, 29-28 & 29-28).

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Krantz	9	10	9	28
Kenan	10	9	10	29

Bout 9: Mark De La Rosa (11-2) (#14) vs. Kai Kara-France (19-7 1 NC) (#10) (Flyweight)

The next bout included the first fight of the evening featuring ranked fighters. From the thin flyweight division, #14 ranked Mark De La Rosa faced #10 ranked Kai Kara-France. Mark De La Rosa’s corner was quite vocal throughout the fight, sometimes being the only voice on the broadcast. Halfway through the round, Kara-France landed a good slam takedown, but they did stand up moments after. Early in the second round, Kara-France landed a right cross which floored De La Rosa. When he got back up, De La Rosa failed to get a single leg takedown. In the third round, De La Rosa got a cut above his left eye. After three rounds of dominant performance, Kai Kara-France took home the W via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27 & 29-28).

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
De La Rosa	9	9	9	27
Kara-France	10	10	10	30

Bout 10: Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos (21-5) (#14) vs. Li Jingliang (16-5) (Welterweight)

In the co-main event of the evening, China’s Li Jingliang faced Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos. The first round was pretty evenly matched until the final seconds, where Li dropped dos Santos with a punch. He was able to recover, putting Li in a standing clinch up against the cage until the round ended. Both fighters landed good strikes in the purely stand-up based second round. The third round was mostly like the two before, with Li out-striking although dos Santos was clearly still in the fight. This was the case at least until Li dropped dos Santos with an uppercut, and then dropped him a second time through more punches up against the cage, ending the fight in the final seconds of the fight. Li Jingliang got his third victory in a row, and will likely crash the welterweight rankings, defeated a ranked fighter.

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Total
Dos Santos	9	9
Li	10	10

In the main event of the show, China’s Weili Zhang faced UFC Strawweight Champion, Jessica Andrade. From the very start, Zhang was landing tons of low kicks. They landed some punches, although a right hook for Zhang made Andrade lean over. Zhang got tons of knee strikes to the gut in a clinch up against the cage. Exiting clinch, Andrade was hit with two punches while retreating which dropped her. Zhang threw two more punches before the referee stepped in, ending the fight in under a minute. Zhang Weili became China’s first UFC Champion, and in the best location possible to do so. China finished the evening with an impressive record of 5-1 in all of their fights.

My Scorecard:

Fighter	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3	Round 4	Round 5	Total
Weili
Andrade

In a rare occasion of events, next week will have the second UFC event in a row with a Championship fight. Live from Yas Island, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Khabib Nurmagomedov will attempt to defend his UFC Lightweight Championship against the interim champion, “Diamond” Dustin Poirier. The card will also include appearances from fellow Russian talent in Islam Makhachev, Mairbek Taisumov, Zubaira Tukhugov and many others. Being a PPV card, the show will also have very recognizable names in Paul Felder, Curtis Blaydes, Joanne Calderwood and others competing.