The Beast Championship had its inaugural show on Saturday night in Paju, South Korea. In the main event, Min Hyeok Lee implemented a grappling heavy blitz to earn a decision victory over Jin Se Lee.
Min Hyeok Lee put the pressure on early by stepping forward and looping shots, not giving any room for his adversary to get set to throw back any offense. Although the Extreme Combat product failed in his first attempt at a takedown, he did not on his second try.
After dumping ‘Korean Eagle’ on his back against the fence, Min Hyeok Lee did his best Khabib Nurmagomedov impersonation and wrapped up both legs. But that did not last very long.
Jong Hyeok Park
Submission attempts
Jin Se Lee was able to escape and obtain full guard. The 28-year-old then attempted an armlock from the bottom and kept his opponent tight. The ref felt there was not enough action so he stood them up.
With three minutes still left in the first round, Min Hyeok Lee made it no secret that he wanted to get the fight back to the canvas and he did but not after eating some solid jabs. This time around he was able to advance position and connected with a myriad of punches while defending submission attempts.
The game plan did not change at all in the second round. Min Hyeok Lee found another opportunity to send the fight to the ground when his foe slipped.
Jong Hyeok Park
Winning formula
Covering up to sustain the least amount of damage and bide his time until a sweep presented itself was what Jin Se Lee was waiting for which came eventually. Pushing off the cage created an opening for him to gain top position yet both men were so slippery with sweat that it did not last long.
Once Min Hyeok Lee was back on top, the 25-year-old continued his ground and pound to close out the round.
With two rounds in the bag, Min Hyoek Lee did not sway away from the winning formula and dominated the final round. He cruised the rest of the fight and earned himself a clean sweep on the scorecards.
Min Hyeok Lee rebounds after dropping a decision to Ryoji Kudo at OWS 10 a year ago and moves to 6-2 overall. His opponent drops to 4-3.
Jong Hyeok Park
Teenage prospects
The co-main event was a battle between two teenage prospects in the strawweight division. Ye Rin Hong and In Nyeong Choi met in the center of the cage and put on a show for the people in attendance.
Choi was having success early on with a more diverse attack on the feet. She quickly established her distance and touched up her opponent with combinations. Even though Hong kept the marching forward, Choi used effective footwork and head movement to evade most of the punches coming her way.
With nothing seemingly working, Hong clinched up and took the fight to the mat with relative ease. The DK Multi-Gym representative instantly labored to advance and locked up a crucifix. Yet Choi was able to slither out.
Jong Hyeok Park
Serious shots
She ate some serious shots and once again found herself defending the crucifix. Luckily, the bell rang to end the round.
Around 40 seconds into the second round, Choi was on her back again. Hong wore down her opponent with suffocating pressure and shots from close range. A failed choke attempt allowed Choi to get back up and the roles reversed when Hong tried for a lackluster hip toss.
While on her back, Hong found an opening and pushed one foot off the fence to swing the hips around to seize the armbar. And after some adjustments, Choi tapped.
With this submission win, Hong (3-1) picks up her first finish as a professional and continues her rise up the ranks in the regional scene. Meanwhile, Choi (1-1) loses for the first time as a mixed martial artist.
TBC 1, Paju, February 27th
Min Hyeok Lee def. Jin Se Lee via Decision (Unanimous)
Ye Rin Hong def. In Nyeong Choi via Submission (Armbar) in Round 2
Combat Wrestling: Sung Jong Lee def. In Seong Jang via Decision (Unanimous)
Myeong Hwan Kim def. Seung Jun Lee via Decision (Split)
Jong Jae Kim Ahn Cheol def. Jong Jae Kim via Submission (Rea-Naked Choke) in Round 1
Ha Rang Choi def. Chan Jung Park via Decision (Unanimous)
Ye Jin Cho def. Eun Bi Cho via Decision (Unanimous)
Myung Ju Lee def. Tae Yoon Kang via KO (Punch) in Round 1
Hyo Je Cho def. Sang Min Park via Decision (Unanimous)
