UFC on ESPN+ 38: ‘The Korean Zombie’ full pre-fight interview

‘The Korean Zombie,’ Chan Sung Jung, spoke with the media ahead of UFC on ESPN+ 38 on ‘Fight Island’ in Abu Dhabi.

‘The Korean Zombie,’ Chan Sung Jung, spoke with the media ahead of UFC on ESPN+ 38 on ‘Fight Island’ in Abu Dhabi.

UFC on ESPN+ 38’s James Krause wants to end fighting career on good terms

James Krause explains his decision to step into UFC on ESPN+ 38 on short notice and how his window to compete is shrinking.

ABU DHABI – [autotag]James Krause[/autotag] spoke to the media ahead of his fight with Claudio Silva at UFC on ESPN+ 38.

Krause (27-8 MMA, 8-4 UFC) discussed his welterweight bout with Silva (14-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC), stepping in for the fight on just 13 days’ notice, the challenges of this specific matchup, balancing his career with coaching, his retirement plan and more.

Watch the complete interview in the video above.

UFC on ESPN+ 38 takes place Saturday at Flash Forum at Yas Island. The entire card streams on ESPN+.

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Ciryl Gane vs. Ante Delija off Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 38 card

Ciryl Gane vs. Ante Delija is off Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 38 card, due to contractual problems from Delija’s side.

[autotag]Ciryl Gane[/autotag]’s return to the octagon will have to wait even longer.

The co-main event fight between Gane (6-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) and newcomer [autotag]Ante Delija[/autotag] (17-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC) is off Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 38 card.

MMA Junkie confirmed the news with UFC officials following an initial report from French outlet LaSueur.com. While an exact reason for the withdrawal wasn’t given to MMA Junkie, LaSeuer.com cited contractual problems from Delija’s side, seemingly related to his previous deal with the PFL.

An official announcement is expected shortly.

Gane has had numerous fights fall through dating back to April, bouncing from bouts with Shamil Abdurakhimov, Sergey Pavlovich then back to Abdurakhimov, before he eventually landed Delija. That’s four straight matchups canceled for the French prospect.

Of his six professional fights, Gane has finished five of them. His lone decision win came in his past outing in December 2019 against Tanner Boser at UFC on ESPN+ 23.

The latest lineup for the UFC’s Oct. 17 event includes:

  • Brian Ortega vs. Chan Sung Jung
  • Jessica Andrade vs. Katlyn Chookagian
  • Modestas Bukauskas vs. Jimmy Crute
  • Thomas Almeida vs. Jonathan Martinez
  • Mateusz Gamrot vs. Guram Kutateladze
  • Poliana Botelho vs. Gillian Robertson
  • James Krause vs. Claudio Silva
  • Jun Yong Park vs. John Phillips
  • Jamie Mullarkey vs. Fares Ziam
  • Gadzhimurad Antigulov vs. Maxim Grishin
  • Said Nurmagomedov vs. Mark Striegl

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UFC on ESPN+ 38 free fight: ‘The Korean Zombie’ demolishes Frankie Edgar on home soil

Ahead of his main event at UFC on ESPN+ 38, relive Chan Sung Jung’s first-round TKO finish submission of Frankie Edgar at UFC on ESPN+ 23

The arena in Busan, South Korea was filled with chants of “Zombie! Zombie!” as “The Korean Zombie,” [autotag]Chan Sung Jung[/autotag], delivered one of the biggest performances of his career at UFC on ESPN+ 23.

[autotag]Frankie Edgar[/autotag] had stepped in on just over two weeks’ notice to replace the injured Brian Ortega for the December 2019 bout in South Korea. But the change of opponent appeared to matter little to Jung, who produced an inspired performance to score a huge first-round win.

Seemingly energized by the raucous crowd inside the Sajik Arena, Jung snapped out some strong early punches and easily shrugged off an Edgar takedown attempt as he imposed his strength on the former UFC lightweight champion in the opening seconds of the fight.

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Jung then countered an Edgar leg kick with a heavy left hand that stung the American as the crowd turned up the noise in anticipation of an early finish. The South Korean didn’t need a second invitation and poured on the pressure with a salvo of strikes that sent Edgar to the deck, where Jung continued his onslaught.

Somehow, Edgar managed to battle his way back to his feet, but another barrage of strikes sent him back down to the canvas as referee Marc Goddard stepped in to spare him further punishment and hand Jung a huge win in front of his fellow countrymen.

Jung (16-5 MMA, 6-2 UFC), returns to action against Ortega (14-1 MMA, 6-1 UFC) in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 38, which takes place Saturday at Flash Forum at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

Before he faces “T-City,” relive “The Korean Zombie’s” one-round demolition job on Edgar via the video above.

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