Fighter Kim Sang-won (30), a member of the Korean Top Team, is more famous abroad than in Korea. He played 7 of his career 15 matches (9 wins, 5 losses, 1 draw) abroad. There are also various places where the tournament was held, such as Japan, Australia, Russia, and Guam.
Kim Sang-won is also known as ‘a fighter who beat a UFC fighter’. In the ‘Hex Fight Series 13’ tournament held in Melbourne, Australia in March 2018, Jack Jenkins (Australia) was defeated with a rear naked choke in the first round. This match later became a hot topic. After losing to Kim Sang-won, Jenkins went on a winning streak and won his UFC debut in February. At the same time, Kim Sang-won’s stock price also rose.
Kim Sang-won (above) has excellent ground skills. Choke in particular is a trademark. Photo = Double G FC
Kim Sang-won knocks on the UFC. He will participate in Season 2 of ‘Road to UFC’ held in Shanghai, China on the 27th and 28th of this month. Road to UFC is an event designed to give Asia’s top mixed martial arts fighters the opportunity to sign with the UFC. Eight fighters from each of the four weight classes, flyweight, bantamweight, featherweight and lightweight, will participate. If you compete in a tournament style and win the final championship, you will sign an official contract with the UFC.
Kim Sang-won participates in a featherweight tournament. In the featherweight division, Lee Jung-young won the UFC contract in Season 1, which lasted from June of last year to February of this year. It is a weight class that has a deep relationship with Korean fighters such as ‘Korean Zombie’ Chan-seong Jeong and ‘Superboy’ Doo-ho Choi, who are currently playing in the UFC. The current champion is Alexander Volkanovski (Australia), who is considered the strongest in all weight classes. It is one of the most competitive weight classes in the UFC.
Kim Sang-won will have his first match against Japan’s Keisuke Sasuke. SARS, a former champion of the Japanese martial arts group ‘Shoot’, was eliminated early in Season 1 last year, but threw a challenge again in Season 2. The record is not bad with 11 wins, 2 losses and 1 draw.
For other players, overseas matches can be exciting or nerve-wracking. But Kim Sang-won is not like that. just be cool In his own words, his overseas experience is rich enough to say that his passport is in tatters. It is my first time in Shanghai, China, but I believe that there will be no problem if I prepare as usual.
“It’s a bit of a burden because a Korean fighter won the featherweight division in Season 1. But I think good energy will follow if you do what you normally do.”
Kim Sang-won recently followed his teammate’s second team to the Australian tournament. He met Jenkins, whom he easily beat, and who is now in the UFC. The moment the two players met each other’s eyes, they recognized each other and exchanged greetings. Kim Sang-won has not forgotten the situation at that time.
“It was very nice to meet him, but there was an invisible sense of competition. I felt good when he said he was going to the UFC because he was a player who wanted to do well. But on the other hand, I think I was stimulated a lot myself. It’s an opportunity I want to have.”
Kim Sang-won is a player with excellent ground skills. In particular, his trademark choke technique is to strangle his opponent. Of his nine professional wins, four ended with a rear naked choke or guillotine choke. The technique that beat Jenkins was also a choke.
“I don’t always have the mind to win with the choke. I think what I prepared for usually came naturally during the match. But it’s true that I gained more confidence after winning a lot with the choke.”
Kim Sang-won, who practiced taekwondo as a child, worked as an instructor at a local dojo until enlisting in his early 20s. Then, during his military service, he discovered the charm of mixed martial arts and rushed to the Korean top team as soon as he was discharged. It was the beginning of ‘Fighter’ Kim Sang-won.
As he was busy playing, Sang-won Kim, now in his 30s, naturally began to worry about his future. This Road to UFC is an opportunity that came from such a situation. He is preparing earnestly because he doesn’t want to miss it anymore. Coincidentally, his nickname is ‘No Love’. I want to throw away my worries and problems and just focus on the game.토스카지노
Kim Sang-won dreams of entering the UFC. Reporter Lee Seok-moo
“I’m working hard, determined to practice at least one more time when I have time to think. My mother and father, who were initially against and worried about exercise, now support me so hard. To repay my parents, I really want to win a UFC contract. I’ve been to many other countries, so now I’m going to take a plane to the United States, the home of the UFC.”