“The Korean Zombie” walked away victorious at UFC on ESPN 25, but the win didn’t come without some mid-fight adversity.
According to his head coach Eddie Cha, Chan Sung Jung suffered a shoulder injury in the second round of Saturday’s main event.
“Out of all of the UFC main events he’s had, this is the first one he’s had a decision,” Cha said on the ESPN+ post-fight show. “He’s kind of disappointed in it, but at the same time, he did pop his shoulder in and out.”
The Korean Zombie’s shoulder “popped in and out” during a takedown in the second round at #UFCVegas29
It’s the same shoulder that was injured against Jose Aldo. pic.twitter.com/sOYPyKaqIo
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) June 20, 2021
Saturday wasn’t the first time Jung (17-6 MMA, 7-3 UFC) injured his shoulder in a fight. In his lone promotional title shot, which took place at UFC 163 in August 2013, Jung infamously separated his shoulder. With his arm hanging, he was promptly finished with strikes by then-champion Jose Aldo.
Unlike the fight against Aldo, somehow, Jung was able to work through the injury Saturday until his shoulder popped back in.
“(It’s the) same shoulder that he messed up in the Aldo fight,” Cha said. “He won’t ever say that kind of stuff, that’s why I kind of just put it in there. … In the second round when he went for the takedown and took his back, that’s when it kind of popped in and out a little bit. We were constantly telling him to raise his hands. Then, after the fight, he was like, ‘That’s why I couldn’t raise my hand.’ I was like, ‘Oh, OK.’”
Despite the injury, Jung earned 48-47, 49-46, and 49-46 scorecards from the judges after five rounds of battle against Ige (15-4 MMA, 7-3 UFC). The victory was his third in four fights and returned him into the win column in his first fight since a loss to Brian Ortega suffered in January.
UFC on ESPN 25 took place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card aired on ESPN2 and ESPN+.