Korea Mixed Martial Arts Professional Challenge 1 will take place on September 7 at the Songdo Convensia in Incheon, South Korea. The inaugural event will be headlined by a bantamweight contest between So Jae-Hyun and Yamaguchi Sho.
The longtime veteran So (10-14) is returning to MMA competition after sitting on the shelf for almost two years. The BJJ black belt has faced the likes of Tatsumitsu Wada, Soo Chul Kim, Kazuyuki Miyata, Nam Jin Jo and Kyung Ho Kang although his record reflects that he has tended to come up short against the big names.
He was seen last at TFC 16 when he was knocked out of the first round of the bantamweight tournament by Trevin Jones via punches in the third round. The Shinya Aoki trained submission specialist has kept busy by growing his jiu-jitsu academy and training every day for an eventual return.
His opponent, Yamaguchi (5-7-1), has lent his services to a slew of organizations in Japan such as Pancrase, Shooto, and Gladiator. The 29-year-old is coming off three straight losses and a year long break from active competition.
The co-main event will pit former Road FC middleweight title challenger Jeon Uh-Jin (3-4) against powerful French striker Eddy Chadeyron (1-0).
After losing his debut in Japan under ZST banner, Jeon signed with Road FC and eventually earned a middleweight title shot against Riki Fukuda in 2015. He was stopped in the first round with knees and punches forcing him back to the drawing board. He returned three years later to take on Choi Won-Jun but was outclassed for all fifteen minutes and lost on the scorecards badly.
At Road FC 51 late last year, Jeon was supposed to face Yang Hae-Jun but ran into complications during his weight cut and was pulled from the event. Consequently, he parted ways with the organization shortly thereafter.
Chadeyron is a newcomer to the Korean combat sports scene but has been seen training at Korean Top Team with UFC fighters Park Jun-Yong and Jung Da-Un.
He comes from a striking background with many Muay Thai and kickboxing bouts to his record. The 30-year-old made his MMA debut in Japan earlier this year at Wardog Cage Fight 20 and scored a knockout in the first frame against Junichiro Okamato. The Frenchman will look to make a name for himself by taking out Jeon when they square off.
KMPC 1, Songdo, September 7th
So Jae-Hyun vs Yamaguchi Sho (Bantamweight)
Jeon Uh-Jin vs Eddy Chadeyron (Light Heavyweight)
Kim Dong-Gyu vs Cho Seung-Hyun (Bantamweight)
Choi Jae vs Kwon Hye-Rin (Catchweight)
Kim Tae-Kyun vs Shark (Catchweight)
Lee Min-Ju vs Yang Sung-Woon (Catchweight)
Moon Guk-Hwan vs Kim Kyung-Jung (Bantamweight)
