Like that last straggling guest who refuses to pick up on the obvious cues that the party is over, the UFC plows forward with another weekend fight card smack dab in the middle of the holiday season, just one week after they’ve given the public more than they could possibly want with a three-title fight pay-per-view spectacular from Las Vegas.
But oversaturation is not the fault of the fighters on Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 23 card card. And many of them are in bouts worth keeping tabs on, whether or not you’ll actually get up in the middle of the night in North America to watch the card live. Those fights include the makeshift featherweight main event of Frankie Edgar vs. Chan Sung Jung.
UFC on ESPN+ 23 takes place Saturday at Sajik Arena in Busan, South Korea. The card streams on ESPN+.
Without further ado, on to five burning questions heading into the event.
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Will Frankie Edgar’s change of plans pay off?
UFC Busan was originally scheduled to feature Jung (15-5 MMA, 5-2 UFC) vs. Brian Ortega, but Ortega pulled out due to injury. This led to former UFC lightweight champion Edgar (23-7-1 MMA, 17-7-1 UFC) stepping in and taking the bout on just a few weeks’ notice.
This in and of itself isn’t surprising, because Edgar has long been known for his willingness to fight anyone, anywhere. However, in this specific instance, he had been scheduled to meet Cory Sandhagen on Jan. 25 in what was supposed to be his bantamweight debut.
It seemed a curious move at the time, but things have changed. Edgar was moving to bantamweight in part because he lost in a one-sided manner to then-featherweight champion Max Holloway. With Alexander Volkanovski defeating Holloway for the belt at UFC 245, however, the division landscape has shifted.
Edgar vs. “Korean Zombie,” even as a shotgun main-event arrangement, sounded like a fun fight on paper when it was announced. Now, with things a-changin’ at featherweight, a big win halfway around the world against one of the planet’s most spirited fighters could put Edgar square back into the mix at featherweight.
Will ‘Korean Zombie’ put together another bonus-worthy effort?
Make no mistake about it: This has all the makings of a special night for Jung.
“The Korean Zombie” is as responsible as anyone for putting Korean MMA on the map on a worldwide level. But this also marks his first time competing in his mother country since 2008.
Jung has been with the UFC since 2011, after first making his mark in the WEC. He missed three years along the way due to compulsory military service, which has played a part in his only competing seven times since joining the promotion.
But in case you somehow forgot he’s one of the world’s most exciting fighters, there’s this: He has seven post-fight bonuses in his seven UFC fights. ‘TKZ’ got a double bonus in his memorable 2012 win over Dustin Poirier, and the only fight that didn’t end in extra dough was his loss in a challenge to then-featherweight champ Jose Aldo in 2013.
That comes out to an average of a bonus per fight, and while he’s never needed extra incentive to maintain that pace, fighting at home is all the reason he’d need.
Is this Alexander Razic’s rise or Volkan Oezdemir’s rebirth?
If there’s one thing those on social media enjoy more than celebrating a fighter on the rise, it’s tearing them down after they stumble.
Actually, there might be two things: They also love coming back around on a fighter who makes their second run toward the top after they’ve been counted out.
Volkan Oezdemir just might be one of those redemption tales.
Oezdemir (16-4 MMA, 4-3 UFC) earned his “No Time” moniker with consecutive knockouts in under a minute to earn a shot at then-light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier at UFC 220. But that’s where things went south, as the Swiss competitor lost the first of of what turned into three consecutive fights.
Just as he was about to be relegated to the scrap heap, though, Oezdemir put on a tremendous show with a knockout victory over Ilir Latifi at UFC Montevideo, getting a “Performance of the Night” bonus in the process.
Now, he takes on the unheralded, but dangerous, Aleksander Rakic, a fight that seems destined to produce a real contender one way or another. The Austrian Rakic (12-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) has won four straight, including a 42-second knockout of Jimi Manuwa last time out. Whether we’re watching someone’s rise or someone’s rebirth, this fight should give fans something to ponder.
Can ‘The Korean Superboy’ regain his mojo?
Dooho Choi seemed like he was on the fast track to featherweight superstardom with his flying start out of the gates.
Choi (14-3 MMA, 3-2 UFC) earned finishes in each of his first three UFC bouts, earning “Performance of the Night” awards in two.
He then lost a thrilling battle against Cub Swanson at UFC 206. No one was really going to hold that against him, as he was one half of a bout many considered 2016’s Fight of the Year.
Then he went out and lost to Jeremy Stephens. And while that one was also exciting and earned “Fight of the Night,” the second-round TKO loss seemed like a case of potential fighter regression.
Now, “Superboy” gets a shot at righting the ship on his home territory, where he’ll meet Charles Jourdain. Jourdain (9-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) is doubtlessly a tough competitor, but this should be exactly what Choi needs to get back on track.
Is this Kyung Ho Kang’s make-or-break fight?
Had just one of two judges who scored his fight with Ricardo Ramos at UFC 227 seen so much as one round differently, Kyung Ho Kang would be on a six-fight win streak.
Instead, Busan’s own Kang (16-8 MMA, 5-2 UFC) is 5-1 and on a two-fight winning streak. But that razor-thin margin is the difference between a fighter who is getting a big push against the best competition and one plugging away on Fight Night cards.
Kang meets Liu Pingyuan (15-5 MMA, 2-1 UFC), who is looking to shake off a flying-knee KO loss to Jonathan Martin, in the bantamweight main-card opener. This is something of a sink-or-swim moment for the 32-year-old Kang. A loss here means he’ll be fighting these sort of matchups for the forseeable future. But a victory should mean he gets to meet a top-level name in the division once and for all.
