Featherweights headlined tonight’s historic UFC Fight Night 139 event in Denver as “The Korean Zombie” squared off with Yair Rodriguez.
Jung was initially slated to face former lightweight title holder Frankie Edgar at tonight’s UFC Denver event, but “The Answer” was forced to pullout due to injury.
Yair Rodriguez (10-2 MMA) will compete for the first time since UFC 211 in May of 2017, where he suffered a second-round TKO loss to the aforementioned Frankie Edgar.
Prior to the setback, “El Pantera” had reeled off eight wins in a row, which included victories over BJ Penn and Alex Caceres.
As for the “The Korean Zombie”, Chan Sung Jung has not stepped foot inside the octagon since February of 2017, when he returned from a multi-year hiatus and knocked out Dennis Bermudez. Jung’s next most recent contest occurred in August of 2014, when he came up short in a title fight with then champion Jose Aldo. The fan favorite, Chan Sung Jung, currently holds an overall record of 14-4.
Round one begins and the fighters touch gloves. The Korean Zombie fires off a low kick. Yair responds with one of his own. Both fighters trade low kicks. Yair lands another. The Korean Zombie charges forward with a combination. Yair circles but Jung stays on him with punches. Both men are swinging heavy leather early. Yair with a low kick. He lands another. The Korean Zombie with some nice uppercuts from the clinch. Rodriguez breaks free and lands a low kick. “TKZ” replies with a right hand. The Korean Zombie leaps in with a combination. Yair avoids and lands a nice counter left jab. Jung replies with a right hand followed by a front kick. This fight is all sorts of crazy. Jung with a low kick and then a right hand over the top. He is being very aggressive here in round one. Yair Rodriguez lands a jab to the body. He follows that up with a front kick. The Korean Zombie lands a right hand and then charges after Yair with a combination. “TKZ” looks for a takedown but it is not there. Chants of Zombie flood the Pepsi Center. Jung lands a low kick and then misses with a left hook. He leaps in with a nice left. Yair shoots for a takedown but it is not there. Round one comes to an end.
Zombie rushes in and clips Rodriguez early! #UFCDenver pic.twitter.com/exvzIKBFGw
— UFC (@ufc) November 11, 2018
Round two of the UFC Denver main event begins and Yair Rodriguez lands a jab to get things started. Jung leaps in with a combination followed by a body kick. He pushes “El Pantera” against the cage. Yair with a knee. The Korean Zombie appears to be searching for a trip takedown. Rodriguez reverses the position and lands a knee to the groin of Jung. The referee sees the foul and calls a stop to the action. The Korean Zombie is allowed to recover and then we restart. “TKZ” with a high kick which is blocked. He partially lands a looping right hand. Yair Rodriguez replies with a kick to the body and then a low kick. Chan Sung Jung responds with a crisp jab. He leaps in with a left hook but Yair ducks under and lands a spinning back elbow. “TKZ” forces the clinch and pushes Rodriguez against the cage. Yair breaks free but Jung chases after him and lands a combination. Under ninety seconds remain in round two of this UFC Denver main event. The Korean Zombie lands a right hand. Yair responds with a standing hammer fist. “TKZ” continues to press the action. Yair throws a wild kick but Jung avoids and grabs the clinch. Both men land big punches now. This is getting wild. The Korean Zombie is just throwing himself at Yair here. The horn sounds to end round two.
And THAT is why they call him Korean Zombie!@PanteraUFC lands a spinning-elbow FLUSH, but @KoreanZombieMMA just eats it! #UFCDenver pic.twitter.com/KtBUAkzZd7
— UFC (@ufc) November 11, 2018
Round three of the UFC Denver main event begins and The Korean Zombie lands a left hook. He misses with a kick to the body and so does Yair. Rodriguez just misses with a high kick. That got Jung’s attention. Yair is getting loose now. He throws another crafty kick but Jung just smiles and lands a heavy low kick. Yair Rodriguez with a hard body kick now and then another. The Korean Zombie leaps in with a combination. Incredible heart being shown by both men in this UFC Denver main event. “TKZ” misses with a jab. Yair makes him pay with a hard body kick. The Korean Zombie counters with a right hand. Yair circles and then lands a low kick. “TKZ” with a big right hand that appears to stun Yair. Rodriguez back peddles and Jung chases after him with punches. Chan is really finding a home for his straight right now. Yair Rodriguez responds with another solid low kick. “El Pantera” with a jab followed by a high kick. Jung catches it and unleashes some punches. Both men are bleeding now. Jung with a left hook. He follows that up with a crisp jab. Yair might be fading here. Jung lands a left jab. Yair throws a high kick that misses. The fighters throw leather to end round three.
Wild end to round 3!!#UFCDenver pic.twitter.com/LtiVcEaUmh
— UFC (@ufc) November 11, 2018
Round four of the UFC Denver main event begins and The Korean Zombie lands a nice uppercut. Yair circles out and lands a low kick. Jung charges forward with a right hand but Yair counters nicely with a kick to the body. Rodriguez with a spinning back fist that appears to partially connect. The Korean Zombie continues to utilize a ton of pressure. Yair lands a left hand and Jung staggers back and trips. He gets back up to his feet but Yair is there to greet him with a head kick. The Korean Zombie bites down on his mouthpiece and charges forward with a combination. This guy is just fearless. Jung with a big right hand over the top. That appears to hurt Yair. “El Pantera” is backing up now. The Korean Zombie is pouring on the pressure but can’t seem to land a big shot. Yair Rodriguez attempts a unique takedown but Jung avoids. The Korean Zombie lands a right hand over the top just before the horn sounds to end round four.
BIG right hand by TKZ wobbles Rodriguez, but he survives! #UFCDenver pic.twitter.com/rOwOkNLKg5
— UFC (@ufc) November 11, 2018
The fifth and final round of this UFC Denver main event begins and the fighters hug it out to start. A nice show of respect. Yair Rodriguez with a low kick but The Korean Zombie charges forward with a combination. Both men are working their jabs early. Jung with a nice right hand over the top. He lands another. Yair’s face is busted up. Jung lands another crisp combination. This is a dog fight. Both men stand and trade in the pocket. Yair lands a low kick and Jung replies with a left hook. The Korean Zombie with a good jab. Yair shoots in for a takedown but “TKZ” denies the shot. Two minutes remain. Yair with a jab and then a low kick. The Korean Zombie misses with a big right hand over the top. He lands a let jab but so does Rodriguez. One minute remains and the crowd is on their feet. The Korean Zombie eats a spinning back kick to the body. “TKZ” charges in with a combination that lands. He connects with a big left. Yair Rodriguez lands an elbow at the horn that face plants The Korean Zombie. Is this going to the judges or not? That is the big question here.
OH MY GOODNESS YAIR RODRIGUEZ WITH SECONDS LEFT!!!! WOW!!!#UFCDenver @PanteraUFC pic.twitter.com/J0xN3r6AIG
— UFC (@ufc) November 11, 2018