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Analysis of the biggest post-fight storylines from UFC Fight Night 225, including an ode to “The Korean Zombie” after retirement.
What mattered most at UFC Fight Night 225 at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore? Here are a few post-fight musings …
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Max Holloway is once again in tricky territory after his KO of Chan Sung Jung in the UFC Fight Night 225 headliner.
[autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag] held serve as a massive favorite on Saturday when he brutally knocked out Chan Sung Jung in the UFC Fight Night 225 main event.
Former featherweight champion Holloway (25-7 MMA, 21-7 UFC) added another notable name to his legendary resume when he put down “The Korean Zombie” Jung (17-8 MMA, 7-5 UFC) with a third-round knockout in the headlining act at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore.
The result maintained Holloway’s position as one of the top contenders at 145 pounds, but with three losses to current titleholder Alexander Volkanovski on his resume, it’s far from clear what’s next for “Blessed,”or how he can navigate his way to another chance at the belt, which is his ultimate goal
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Watch the video above for thoughts and analysis on Holloway’s future after UFC Fight Night 225.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 225.
Check out all the facts from UFC Fight Night 225, which saw Max Holloway add to his legendary resume with a highlight knockout win.
UFC Fight Night 225 took place Saturday at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore and saw seven of 13 fights end in a stoppage.
None of those finishes were more memorable than the main event, where former champ [autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag] (25-7 MMA, 21-7 UFC) lived up to expectations when he scored a brutal third-round knockout of [autotag]Chan Sung Jung[/autotag] (17-8 MMA, 7-5 UFC) to send “The Korean Zombie” into retirement in the featherweight bout.
For more on the numbers behind the headliner, as well as the rest of the card, check below for MMA Junkie’s post-event facts from UFC Fight Night 225.
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UFC Fight Night 225 fighters took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay, a program that continued after the UFC’s deal with Venum.
Fighters from Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 225 event took home UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance pay totaling $196,000.
The program, a comprehensive plan that includes outfitting requirements, media obligations and other items under the fighter code of conduct, replaces the previous payments made under the UFC Athlete Outfitting Policy.
UFC Fight Night 225 took place at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore. The entire card streamed on ESPN+.
The full UFC Fight Night 225 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts included:
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[autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Chan Sung Jung[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Anthony Smith[/autotag]: $21,000
def. [autotag]Ryan Spann[/autotag]: $11,000
[autotag]Giga Chikadze[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Alex Caceres[/autotag]: $21,000
[autotag]Rinya Nakamura[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Fernie Garcia[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Taila Santos[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Junior Tafa[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Parker Porter[/autotag]: $6,000
[autotag]Waldo Cortes-Acosta[/autotag]: $4,500
def. [autotag]Lukasz Brzeski[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Garrett Armfield[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Toshiomi Kazama[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Michal Oleksiejczuk[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Chidi Njokuani[/autotag]: $4,500
[autotag]Song Kenan[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Rolando Bedoya[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Billy Goff[/autotag]: $4,000
def. [autotag]Yusaku Kinoshita[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]JJ Aldrich[/autotag]: $11,000
def. [autotag]Na Liang[/autotag]: $4,000
[autotag]Seungwoo Choi[/autotag]: $6,000
def. [autotag]Jarno Errens[/autotag]: $4,000
Under the UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance program’s payout tiers, which appropriate the money generated by Venum’s multi-year sponsorship with the UFC, fighters are paid based on their total number of UFC bouts, as well as Zuffa-era WEC fights (January 2007 and later) and Zuffa-era Strikeforce bouts (April 2251 and later). Fighters with 1-3 bouts receive $4,000 per appearance; 4-5 bouts get $4,500; 6-10 bouts get $6,000; 11-15 bouts earn $11,000; 16-20 bouts pocket $16,000; and 21 bouts and more get $21,000. Additionally, champions earn $42,000 while title challengers get $32,000.
In addition to experience-based pay, UFC fighters will receive in perpetuity royalty payments amounting to 20-30 percent of any UFC merchandise sold that bears their likeness, according to officials.
Full 2023 UFC Promotional Guidelines Compliance payouts:
Year-to-date total: $5,735,500
2022 total: $8,351,500
2021 total: $6,167,500
Program-to-date total: $20,324,500
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 225.
Check out which each fighter had to say during their post-fight interviews at UFC Fight Night 225 in Singapore.
Each week after their bouts in the octagon, we hear fighters’ immediate reaction to the thrill of victory and sometimes the agony of defeat.
At UFC Fight Night 225 in Singapore, 13 fighters (12 winners and one defeated) were given time on the microphone with Michael Bisping to relay their thoughts on what just transpired in the cage at Singapore Indoor Stadium.
From the first winner of the event, Seungwoo Choi, to “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung who announced his retirement after a tough main event defeat, check out each fighter’s post-fight interview videos below. (via UFC’s YouTube channel)
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Giga Chikadze wants to make his pay-per-view debut against a former interim champion.
[autotag]Giga Chikadze[/autotag] wants to make his pay-per-view debut against a former interim champion.
Chikadze (15-3 MMA, 8-1 UFC) returned to the win column on Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 225 main card when he defeated Alex Caceres (21-14 MMA, 16-12 UFC) at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore.
Chikadze rebounded from the first loss of his UFC career against Calvin Kattar. But prior to that, he was on a nine-fight winning streak, and is now eyeing a showdown with former interim featherweight champ [autotag]Yair Rodriguez[/autotag] (16-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC) at UFC 296 Dec. 16 in Las Vegas.
“I want to fight in pay-per-view card in December,” Chikadze said in a post-fight interview with the UFC. “I’ve never fought on a pay-per-view card, and I know it’s going to be a huge show. I want to be there and I want to compete against ‘El Pantera’ Yair Rodriguez.”
The Georgian fighter returned after a 18-month layoff. An active fighter throughout his UFC career, the time away was an unfamiliar feeling for Chikadze.
“It feels so great. I can’t even explain,” Chikadze said. “It’s been a pretty long time, and I felt like I was without a job. Finally I got my dream job back, and I haven’t been so happy for a long time. So finally, we’re back baby … It’s been 15 minutes, and I feel like every second I looked great, and I’m pretty happy after one-and-a-half year layoff with my performance.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 225.
The UFC’s return to Singapore was emotional for Max Holloway, who represented Hawaii proudly weeks after wildfires killed over 100.
[autotag]Max Holloway[/autotag] never had a clean knockout in his career until Saturday – so he admits supernatural forces must’ve been at work when he finished “The Korean Zombie” with a single blow at UFC Fight Night 225.
There was no short of emotion, as each man fought hard for victory with distinct motivations. For Hawaii’s Holloway (25-7 MMA, 21-7 UFC) this week was all about his home state, and in particular the citizens of Lahaina and Maui and all those affected by the recent wildfires there.
“Usually they give me the blackout walkout because we’re the main event and the red corner,” Holloway said at a post-fight news conference. “But I heard the whole arena they did red because they heard me talk about how the people of Lahaina was asking to use red in solidarity with them. The UFC did that and when I heard that, it was crazy. Mana. We use the word mana. It’s the spiritual power. It was here tonight. I could feel it. Like I said, you guys saw the emotion. You saw the emotion. I went crazy after I did (win), because there was so much emotion going on for the last two weeks.”
In early August, wildfires catalyzed by gusty conditions covered 17,000 acres of land in Hawaii. The fires killed at least 115 people and another 388 are still unaccounted for, according to a recent estimate.
Holloway was proud to represent a persevering group during a difficult time. He thanked the UFC for allowing him to wear red shorts, which aren’t typical for his “universal” fight kit.
While representation, awareness, and happiness were his objectives, Holloway thinks in turn the Hawaii people powered the final knockout blow.
“I just let everybody know that the people of Lahaina, Maui are still going through it,” Holloway said. “They’re true warriors. They’re enduring. They’re enduring the pain right now. Me being able to give them something to cheer for for 15 minutes was great. … This was my first-ever walk-off KO, so it was amazing, man. Something was in the air, man. Like I said, mana, spiritual power, was in the air. The people of Lahaina and Maui gave me their power in my right hand. They call me ‘Pillow Holloway,’ so I was like, ‘OK, whatever.’ I guess we had stones in the pillowcase today.”
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With the victory, Holloway moved to 4-1 in his most recent five. His only featherweight losses since 2013 have thrice come to the same man, UFC champion Alexander Volkanovski. While a fourth crack at the same champion when down 0-3 in the lifetime series is unprecedented, Holloway is confident he’ll make history.
“Undeniable, man,” Holloway said of a fourth Volkanovski fight. “All week, I’ve been saying undeniable. I’m not here to call nobody out. That’s you guys’ job to figure that out. It’s the fans’ job to do for me. I’m just here to be undeniable, keep being undeniable. I’ll keep crawling, scratching my way to the top of the mountain. No one is going to stop me getting there.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 225.
Known to UFC fans as “The Korean Zombie,” Chan Sung Jung laid his gloves down in the cage Saturday as he retired from MMA.
It was an emotional scene Saturday in Singapore as “The Korean Zombie” wept and laid his UFC gloves down in the center of the cage, marking the end of his MMA career.
A two-time UFC title challenger and pioneering South Korean athlete, [autotag]Chan Sung Jung[/autotag] lost by third-round knockout against Max Holloway in the UFC Fight Night 225 main event. As he did in many of his career losses, Jung (17-8 MMA, 7-5 UFC) went out swinging.
“I’m going to stop fighting,” Jung said in the cage after the fight. “I always aimed to be a champion when I first started the sport. I’m not here to be ranked third, fourth or fifth. I tried my absolute best to prepare for Max Holloway. I really believed I could beat him. But I ended up failing, so I don’t think I have the opportunity anymore. So I think I’m going to stop fighting.”
Following the announcement, the arena blared “Zombie” by Irish rock band The Cranberries, which served as Jung’s long-time walkout song. The cameras followed an emotional Jung as he headed down the runway and into the locker room.
Appreciation for The Korean Zombie one last time ❤️
What a career. What an ovation! 👏#UFCSingapore pic.twitter.com/LMq4ZTQR9n
— UFC on TNT Sports (@ufcontnt) August 26, 2023
Jung, 36, exits the promotion after a dozen fights under its banner. Following appearances in Korea FC, DEEP, Sengoku, and It’s Showtime, Jung signed with WEC in 2010, just prior to the promotion’s merger with the UFC.
His WEC debut was one for the ages as he lost a close and controversial split decision to Leonard Garcia. The bout was considered one of the promotion’s all-time greatest.
After a knockout loss to George Roop, Jung was absorbed onto the UFC roster. He rematched Garcia and won by twister, the first in UFC history. He followed up the win with two more victories: a seven-second knockout of Mark Hominick, and a submission of Dustin Poirier in an all-out battle.
At UFC 163 in August 2013, Jung challenged for a UFC title for the first time. He lost to then-champion Jose Aldo by fourth-round TKO due to a shoulder dislocation.
Following his failed title bid, Jung partook in South Korea’s mandatory military service. His next fight wasn’t until February 2017, but he returned in style when he finished Dennis Bermudez in under three minutes.
The win set him up for a battle vs. Yair Rodriguez, a fight he was winning up until a rare spinning back elbow with one second left on the clock ended his night with a loss.
Over his next four fights, “Zombie” went 3-1 with wins over Renato Moicano, Frankie Edgar, and Dan Ige, as well as a loss to Brian Ortega. The successful stretch was enough to earn him a second crack at title gold.
At UFC 273 in April 2022, featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski defeated Jung by fourth-round TKO. The appearance was his most recent prior to Saturday’s loss to Holloway.
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 225.
Erin Blanchfield thinks her strength of schedule makes her the most worthy No. 1 contender.
[autotag]Erin Blanchfield[/autotag] thinks her strength of schedule makes her the most worthy No. 1 contender.
Blanchfield (12-1 MMA, 6-0 UFC) outworked former title challenger Taila Santos (19-3 MMA, 4-3 UFC) to earn the unanimous decision win in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 225 main card at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore.
Another pivotal flyweight clash between top contender Manon Fiorot and former two-time UFC strawweight champion Rose Namajunas takes place next Saturday in Paris, but Blanchfield says a win over Santos outweighs the outcome between Fiorot and Namajunas.
“This can definitely make me a No. 1 contender for the title shot next,” Blanchfield said in a post-fight interview with the UFC. “I know Manon and Rose are fighting as well. People arguably thought she won that fight against Valentina, and Rose and Manon, neither one of them have fought Valentina.
“Rose is new to the division, so I feel like this is my sixth win at flyweight, and my last win was against a former champ (Andrade). This was against someone (Santos) who almost beat the champ, so I definitely feel like I’m next in line.”
When asked to give a prediction, Blanchfield picked Fiorot to spoil Namajunas’ flyweight debut.
“I have a feeling Manon is going to win,” Blanchfield said. “I think she’s just a little bit bigger girl. I think Rose is a great fighter, and you never know. Either girl can win, but if I had to pick, I’d pick Manon”
Blanchfield had to work for her win against Santos, who was able to fend off numerous of her takedown attempts. But Blanchfield sees it as a necessary experience at this point in her career.
“I expect these type of fights, I always hope to do them better,” Blanchfield said. “Just get in there, don’t get hurt at all, finish the fight and get out, but tough fights like this are what make you grow. So sometimes you need them.”
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For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 225.
After UFC Fight Night 225, four fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in Singapore. Check out the winners.
The UFC handed out four post-fight bonuses after Saturday’s card, including Fight of the Night to its headliners.
After UFC Fight Night 225, four fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in Singapore. Check out the winners below.
