Media Korean Zombie apparently had a nagging injury before the Ortega fight; Targets March/April return

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KZ never mentioned it the whole time, but it seems that he had a nagging knee injury coming in to his last fight.

chan-sung-jung-of-south-korea-holds-an-open-training-session-for-fans-picture-id1189420206


Since returning home to South Korea, Jung has focused on recovering from a collateral ligament tear that occurred during preparation for the Ortega fight. He had a procedure done, in which pins from an old ACL surgery were removed. It may sound gruesome to some, but Jung stated it is not a major injury and he aims for a March or April return.

“Training for my last fight in Korea was interesting, it was very comfortable to be at home, but it also takes a lot of resources to bring my Fight Ready family around the world to me. Once I get my next opponent, I’ll likely travel and come join the squad in Arizona.”

Source: https://mmajunkie.usatoday.com/2020...edsharipov-next-gives-timeline-for-ufc-return
 
KZ is a fucking bad ass and that knee may have been a factor against TRT City, but he got blown out in that fight. I don't think he's making an excuse, he's just stating a fact.

The guy is a warrior. I'll always watch his fights. However, fighters seemingly age overnight with no apparent gradual decline like a team sport athlete. I would hope he's more active in the future before he's too old.
 
Now it makes sense on why KZ didn't utilize low kicks in his last fight and his movement was limited. And why there's something off with the way he threw kicks in that one. It doesn't look good at all. Curious to see how he does if he comes back training to the US. He really had limited training partners at Korea, and I think it's best for him to have multiple training partners and coaches for his bounce back.
 
Substance Abuse said:
KZ is a fucking bad ass and that knee may have been a factor against TRT City, but he got blown out in that fight. I don't think he's making an excuse, he's just stating a fact.

The guy is a warrior. I'll always watch his fights. However, fighters seemingly age overnight with no apparent gradual decline like a team sport athlete. I would hope he's more active in the future before he's too old.
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Exactly. And he's targeting March/April already. That's 3 months from now. He's trying have a good start for 2021. I doubt they'll give him Zabit coz he's coming from a loss. Jeremy Stephens or those young guys in the top 15 will be good. I believe he'll bounce back in his next fight. He will.
 
giovanni002 said:
Exactly. And he's targeting March/April already. That's 3 months from now. He's trying have a good start for 2021. I doubt they'll give him Zabit coz he's coming from a loss. Jeremy Stephens or those young guys in the top 15 will be good. I believe he'll bounce back in his next fight. He will.
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It might seem a bit crazy, but I think he should fight Arnold Allen next. Allen needs a big test to improve his stock. It's a risky fight for KZ but also an exciting one. If not that, possibly with the winner of Pineda/Swanson if he isn't trying to jump right back into title contention. I think he should just focus on being active and getting cage time.
 
Substance Abuse said:
It might seem a bit crazy, but I think he should fight Arnold Allen next. Allen needs a big test to improve his stock. It's a risky fight for KZ but also an exciting one. If not that, possibly with the winner of Pineda/Swanson if he isn't trying to jump right back into title contention. I think he should just focus on being active and getting cage time.
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I like that. The Swanson fight should have happened 8 years ago, we missed out on that one. But yep, hope he gets to fight and win at least 2 times next year, one fight at a time.
 
KZ is one of the purest fighters ever.

It's really unfortunate that he's had so many injuries. I feel like us fans have really missed out but he's so mentally strong.
 
giovanni002 said:
Now it makes sense on why KZ didn't utilize low kicks in his last fight and his movement was limited. And why there's something off with the way he threw kicks in that one. It doesn't look good at all. Curious to see how he does if he comes back training to the US. He really had limited training partners at Korea, and I think it's best for him to have multiple training partners and coaches for his bounce back.
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That actually explains alot... Thanks for that.
 
I knew something wasn't right, dude look stiff as fuck compare to his usual self..I called it during the fight too.

I would love to see a rematch in the future with him and Brian ortega again.
 
Always root for him + genuine, real as it gets dude

If you don't like The Korean Zombie delete your Sherdog account, cocksucka!
 
I always find it annoying when fighters are just dropping facts about their health during camp or any difficulties they faced before the fight and people just label those as excuses. Most fighters come in injured after camp prior to a fight, it's normal. I don't see a problem with fighters mentioning what specific injuries they suffered prior to the fight if they're doing so earnestly.
 
KZ seemed a little off the whole night.
not 100%
but still ate that elbow and stayed awake.

and how much did it suck when he smacked up YAIR BOY the whole time.
and then fluke up elbow.
effin YAIR.
 
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He totally looked off, like 2x slower than normal. And he was spamming some punches, telegraphed almost. Even with a knee injury, he did face Ortega 2.0, who is a serious threat. Ortega looked phenomenal, Zombie looked, well, like a zombie. I hope it was the knee, but I do think he's shot, which pains me.
 
it might not have been a knee. KZ said, it was Ortega's elbow that cause him to lose a fight. As a KZ fan, I hope it was a knee that cause him to lose a fight
 
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