Jung Da Un is in limbo without any knowledge of what the future holds.
It was announced that the South Korean light heavyweight prospect would head stateside for the first time to compete at UFC Oklahoma City on May 2nd. But the promotion was forced to cancel the whole card due to the coronavirus, or Covid-19 outbreak.
The concept of a ‘Fight Island’ hosting shows for international fighters has been floated by UFC president Dana White. He says the infrastructure is currently being built and it should be up and running by June.
Many fighters on the roster have fallen in love with the idea and the location does not seem to matter for Jung at the moment,
“I don’t know anything about ‘Fight Island’ but I am ready to fight anywhere in the world,” he said.
No nonsense
This type of no-nonsense attitude has served him well so far in the UFC. After a rocky start to his professional career in 2015, Jung knocked off ten straight opponents, leading to a contract offer from the organization.
At UFC Shenzhen after two late notice opponent changes he made a successful promotional debut. The Korean came from behind to win via submission against former M-1 Global champion Khadis Ibragimov.
Around four months later, Jung returned to his homeland and dismantled Mike Rodriguez in under a round at UFC Busan. He entered the cage both times as the betting underdog yet came out the victor.
Many fighters are motivated by being seen as underdogs but it doesn’t play on the Korean’s mind at all,
“I don’t think people underestimate me at all. My thought process is to have a better performance every time out and continue my journey to becoming a complete fighter.”
Winning streak
While extending his streak to 12, Jung caught the eye of former welterweight title challenger and UFC colour commentator Dan Hardy. After evaluating his first two performances the Brit placed him at #5 on his ‘Top 5 Prospects Worth Watching In 2020’.
Jung was surprised to receive such an accolade from a former UFC welterweight title challenger,
“Honestly, I was surprised since I believe I am currently not good enough to receive this honor. I am not yet a complete fighter, but having Dan Hardy add me to the list allowed me to gain a lot of confidence.”
Adding to his self-assurance was a recent trip to Thailand to train with light heavyweight contender Volkan Oezdemir, who Jung struck up a friendship during fight week in Busan. Heavyweight juggernaut Alistair Overeem was also in Pattaya along with Jung’s teammate Park Jun Yong.
The experience allowed Jung to exchange information and share tricks of the trade with some of the best big men in the world, something that is missing in his homeland,
“Volkan and Alistair are some of the nicest people,” he said.
“They found my training style very interesting. We were able to learn from each other in every aspect of the sport. The whole trip was very memorable. The training atmosphere, the scenery, and the nerves during sessions. The rest and leisure throughout each day were so perfect.”
Training camp
Not too long after his return from Thailand, Jung headed into training camp to prepare for the fight with Ed Herman at UFC Oklahoma City. With South Korea one of the first countries to be hit by Covid-19 the preparation process was far from normal.
However it gave Jung a good insight into how he might be able to put together a training camp while Covid-19 restrictions are in place. No-one knows when international fighters will be able to compete on UFC cards again.
The Ed Herman fight looks unlikely to be rescheduled but Jung is happy with any matchup, and if the UFC comes calling he will be ready.
