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Eddie Cha has given an injury update on 'The Korean Zombie' aka Chan Sung Jung, after the latter’s UFC Vegas 29 win on June 19th, 2021.
Cha, who is South Korean MMA superstar Zombie’s coach, asserted that the injuries aren’t too bad. However, Cha also indicated that it’s unclear how long 'The Korean Zombie' will remain sidelined by his current injuries.
Speaking to MMA on SiriusXM, Eddie Cha provided fans with an update on Zombie’s injury status. Cha stated:
“Yeah, it [Jung's shoulder] popped in and out in the second round when he went for a takedown and he took his (Dan Ige’s) back. And then, he might have a slight tear. We’re not sure. He’s going to get an MRI. He just left yesterday to Korea. They got there this morning, like, 4 AM. And then, he’ll get an MRI. We’ll see how it is. But it’s not too bad. But it did affect the fight a little bit. ‘Cause I kept on telling him to raise his hands, calling more jabs and check hooks. And he told me after the fight, he’s like, ‘I couldn’t keep my hands up. My shoulder’s hurting’. If you see the progress in the rounds, you know, his jab kind of went down. He fought a little bit slower. But, all in all, he fought through it.”
The Korean Zombie fought then-UFC featherweight champion Jose Aldo for the title at UFC 163 on August 3rd, 2013. In a closely contested fight, Zombie ended up injuring his right shoulder after throwing a right hand. Aldo witnessed Zombie wincing in pain and swarmed him for the fourth-round TKO win.
As noted by Eddie Cha, The Korean Zombie hurt the same shoulder against Dan Ige at UFC Vegas 29. But this time around, Zombie managed to pop it back in, continue fighting, and secure the unanimous decision victory.
The Korean Zombie and his team are lobbying for a fight against Max Holloway
In the aftermath of his big win over Dan Ige at UFC Vegas 29, 'The Korean Zombie' and his team have campaigned for a fight between Jung and Max Holloway. Eddie Cha was also asked about Zombie potentially stepping in on short notice to replace the injured Max Holloway and fight Yair Rodriguez in a rematch next month. Cha responded to this by explaining:
“I think if it was (Max) Holloway, we would be open for it. Yair hasn’t fought for so long. I don’t know where his rankings at. I think it’s a little bit lower. I don’t know what that fight does for us. At first, obviously, we want the title shot next. If that’s not possible, then we definitely want to fight the winner of those two (Alexander Volkanovski vs. Brian Ortega). You know, in the post (post-fight press conference) conference, he was talking about Holloway too. He’s always wanted to fight Holloway. He’s been a big fan of his. He thinks it’ll be a great fight. And, yeah, we’re gunning for the title shot or Holloway.”
Furthermore, Eddie Cha was asked if there’s a specific reason behind 'The Korean Zombie' pursuing a fight against Max Holloway. He was asked whether this pursuit is because Holloway is ranked number one and is in the way of Zombie’s title shot. Cha replied by saying:
“Yeah, I mean, he’s ranked No. 1. And again, I think it’d just be a super-exciting fight. He always goes after anybody that he really admires and he wants to fight. And so, we’ve all been fans of Holloway, and we think we match up pretty well against him.” (*Audio courtesy: MMA on SiriusXM; H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)
Which fighter do you want to see The Korean Zombie face next? Sound off in the comments!
