Korean Zombie will be fighting for UFC gold for the second time in his career, but this time around, he has much more confidence.
Zombie fought José Aldo at UFC 163 in 2013 when the champ was 22-1 and hadn't lost since 2005. He was viewed as unbeatable and many weren't giving Zombie a chance as he was around a +600 underdog which was the biggest he was in his entire career.
Ultimately, it was Aldo winning by fourth-round TKO after Zombie dislocated his shoulder. Now, years later, the fan-favorite spoke about the fight and said it is a good learning experience for him.
“Nine years ago, nobody could beat José Aldo. Nobody even thought about beating him. Nobody entertained (it). And (I’m) so happy that (I’m) fortunate enough to fight him because (I) had the experience now to actually step up and win a title (fight)," Zombie said through his interpreter on The MMA Hour."
Korean Zombie is set to return to fight Alexander Volkanovski for the featherweight title in the main event of UFC 273 on April 9. Volkanovski was originally supposed to fight Max Holloway but the Hawaiian was forced out of the bout due to an injury, which allowed Zombie to get the shot. The event also takes place in Jacksonville, Florida.
Korean Zombie (17-6) is currently ranked fourth at featherweight and returned to the win column last time out with a decision win over Dan Ige. In the fight before, he lost a decision to Brian Ortega which snapped his two-fight winning streak and had he won, he likely would've gotten a title shot. In his career, Jung holds notable wins over Dustin Poirier, Frankie Edgar, and Dennis Bermudez among others.
Do you think Korean Zombie will win the featherweight championship this time after coming up short against José Aldo 9 years ago?