Chan Sung Jung

When one thinks of MMA fighting and the fighters, we heavily picture a builder person with a muscular body (which is a hulk?).

Anyways, let’s get it real here and not lead to a slightly unreasonable way. And here’s to why is it! Chan Sung Jung is a South Korean professional MMA fighter who is aloof with his small thin, yet strongly packed body.

In fact, he is not the fastest of the guy you see, or strongest or even tallest. Sung Jung is literally not going to put all the eggshells in a basket as he is so well rounded and hard to predict.

Therefore, people have perfectly named him “The Korean Zombie” for his deadly avatar during fights, who would go on like a haunt of the continuous aggressive fight.

The zombie-like fighter has featured in matches as the WEC, Pancrase, World Victory Road, and DEEP. At present, Sung Jung is competing in the Featherweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

“I think a lot of people underestimate me as a fighter, so that leads to people wanting to challenge me because maybe they think it will be an easy win. I’m out to prove them wrong. “

-Chan Sung Jung

Quick Facts

Full Name Chan Sung Jung (Korean: 정찬성)
Date of Birth March 17, 1987
Birthplace Pohang, South Korea
Nick Name The Korean Zombie
Religion Christianity
Nationality South Korean
Ethnicity Asian
Zodiac Sign Pisces
Age 35 Years Old
Height 5 ft 9.5 in (1.77 m)
Weight 145 lb (66 kg)
Hair Color Black
Eye Color Black
Build Athletic
Father’s Name Name Unknown
Mother’s Name Name Unknown
Siblings No
Education Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology
Marital Status Married
Wife Park Sun Young
Kids Two daughters, Jung Min Seo and Jung Eun Seo
Profession MMA Fighter and Kickboxer
Stance Orthodox
Affiliations Korean Zombie MMA
The MMA Lab (formerly)
Fight Ready (2019–present)
Active Years 2007–present
Net Worth $1 million
Social Media Instagram, Twitter
Merch Coffee Mugs, Autographed Poster
Last Update July, 2022

Chang Sung Jung | Body Metrics, Workout, and Diet

Sung Jung is a medium-sized man who stands at 5 ft 9.5 in (1.77 m) and weighs 145 lb (66 kg). Similarly, the fighter works out and eats healthily every day. He consumes a lot of protein and nutrient-dense foods.

However, following his devastating loss to Brian Ortega, he gained 20 kgs due to overeating. Furthermore, he believed his career was over, and the loss had a negative impact on his mental health.

Nonetheless, the Korean Zombie got back on his feet and began his healing process by speaking with a psychiatrist. Following that, he resumed his training and appeared to be in good shape in his recent fight against Dan Ige.

He is also a thin, fair-skinned man with short black hair and eyes the same color as his hair. He also has an oval face, chinky eyes, and a wide smile.

Chan Sung Jung | Childhood

Sung Jung was born on March 17, 1987, in Pohang, South Korea, as a Pisces. Not to mention his depressing childhood, which caused him to grow up shy and lonely.

As I take you to his birthday, you should know that his hometown is a port known for steelyards and shipbuilding, and he has no single siblings.

Moving forward, his parents were always working, so he was deprived of their attention. What’s more, he grew up with other people’s families until the age of seven, and because he didn’t get enough quality time with his own, he assumed they (the family he grew up with) were his parents.

His father used to work in the steel industry, mostly lifting stuff out of hot ovens because he wasn’t a particularly strong person. Meanwhile, his mother worked in a clothing store she owns in the city of Daegu, so they were living apart.

While all of this may seem depressing to us, it is quite common in Korea because they prioritize jobs the most. Later, at the age of eight, he returned to live with his family, and he was always that shy, loner kid with no self-confidence, which explains why he never had many friends throughout middle school.

Overall, studying in Nam Yam Ju was difficult. He was from a different region and was introverted, making him an outcast at school, and he was frequently bullied.

Combat Sports (Commencement)

Overall, seeing him in that condition inspired his aunt to enroll him in athletics and martial arts. His aunt forced him into Hapkido classes and gyms when he was fourteen (early adolescence), which he found quite boring at first.

However, as time passed, he grew accustomed to it, honing his social skills and beginning to learn kickboxing, which proved to be a watershed moment in his life, propelling him to where he is now.

Following that, he graduated from Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology and began training in judo and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

When he was in his late teens (around the age of 18), he began taekwondo and joined the South Korean Navy. In 2007, he won his first sambo tournament, which was organized by the Korean Sambo Association.

Following that, he won tournaments as the Pancrase Korea Neo-Blood Tournament’s Lightweight division, defeating Yoo In Seok and Lee Hyung Geol.

Following that, in 2008, he made his professional mixed martial arts debut, winning the entire KOREA-8-man FC’s MMA tournament in the 65 kg division. Who would have thought such a shy kid would have to make it through?

Anyway, he continued his streak by appearing in the 2007 Korean television cable show Street Fighter. He won the show in the 70 kg weight category tournament, which was only a stand-up fight and not a ring fight.

Career in Mixed Martial Arts | Chan Sung Jung

As previously stated, Sng Jung made his professional MMA debut in 2007, when he won the Pancrase Korea Lightweight Tournament in December. Following that, he won both of his fights for Japanese promotion DEEP after winning the Korean FC in 2008.

To illustrate, one of his two fights for the DEEP was a unanimous decision victory over Michihiro Omigawa on August 16, 2008. In contrast, his other victory came against Fanjin Son at DEEP: 39 Impact, where he was knocked out in 17 seconds.

Sengoku

Sung Jung made his Sengoku debut in 2009 during the Featherweight Grand-Prix, defeating Shintaro Ishiwatari in the first round at Sengoku 7.

At 4:29 of the first round, he won with a right-hand blow followed by a rear-naked choke submission as Shintaro surrendered.

He advanced to the second round of Sengoku 8 on May 2, 2009, after winning the first round. Unfortunately, he was eliminated in a unanimous decision by eventual winner Masanori Kanehara.

Due to Sengoku’s biased history against Koreans, the game caused much dissatisfaction among fans. Even so, let’s move on to the next game from June 7, 2009, when he faced American Matt Jaggers in a reserve bout for the tournament at Sengoku 9.

At the same time, the winner was supposed to step up as a replacement; however, despite winning the match with a triangle choke submission at 1:25 of the second round, Sung Jung was not given priority.

Extreme Cagefighting Around the World

Sung Jung made his World Extreme Cagefighting debut on April 24, 2010 after signing with them.

At WEC 48, he made his debut against Leonard Garcia (replacing the injured Cub Swanson). However, he was defeated by a split decision, sparking debate about the fight’s judges’ decision.

By the end of the controversy, he had won Fight of the Night and the Wrestling Observer Newsletter had declared it the Fight of the Year.

As a result, he advanced to the next match against George Roop on September 30, 2010, at WEC 51, which also ended in a knockout loss in the second round.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

  1. January 22, 2011 (UFC Fight Night 23): Backed out due to an injury against Rani Yahya
  2. March 26, 2011 (UFC Fight Night 24): Replacement of the injured Nam Phan against Garcia, won by a twister in the final second of the second round.
  3. December 10, 2011 (UFC 140): Victory over Mark Hominick via KO at seven seconds of the first round
  4. May 15, 2012 (UFC on Fuel TV: Korean Zombie vs. Poirier): Won against Dustin Poirier via submission in the fourth round
  5. July 6, 2013 (UFC 162): Was to face Ricardo Lamas but pulled out.
  6.  August 3, 2013 (UFC 163): Replaced the injured Anthony Pettis against José Aldo, lost in the fourth round via TKO as Jung suffered a dislocated shoulder.
  7. October 4, 2014 (UFC Fight Night 53): Match against Akira Corassani but pulled out due to injury hence, replaced by Max Holloway.

As he advanced in mid-October, Chan Sung Jung stated he needed to return to his native land for the mandatory military service and would be back for the fight in two years as per his manager.

Before moving onto his remaining journey, let me grab the chance to showcase his achievements till October 2014.

  •  first Submission of the Night honors and Submission of the Year by the World MMA Awards (2011)
  • Knockout of the Night honors (2011)
  • Submission of the Night and Fight of the Night honors (2012)

Post Military

As he served the military in full-fledged, in mid-2016, he attended Rener Gracie’s inaugural Korean Super Seminar in Seoul.

  1.  February 4, 2017(UFC Fight Night 104): Faced Dennis Bermudez won through knockout in the first round
  2. July 29, 2017 (UFC 214): Expected to face Ricardo Lamas but pulled out due to a knee injury and thus, Jason Knight replaced him
  3. November 10, 2018 (UFC Fight Night 139): Match against Frankie Edgar, but Yair Rodríguez replaced him due to his injury. However, Sung Jung lost the match due to knockout in the final second of the fifth round.
  4. June 22, 2019 (UFC on ESPN+ 12): faced Renato Moicano and claimed the victory via technical knockout in 58 seconds of the first round.
  5. December 21, 2019 (UFC on ESPN+ 23): Match against Brian Ortega; however, Brian pulled out due to his knee injury, and hence, Frankie Edgar came up as a replacement. Bagged the win by Jung via TKO in the first round.
  6. October 18, 2020 (UFC Fight Night 180): Fight against Brian Ortega was rescheduled but lost through a unanimous decision.

By the end of this match, Chan Sung Jung had collected the following achievements.

  • Performance of the Night bonus award (2017)
  • Fight of the Night honors (2018)
  • Performance of the Night award (2019)
  • Performance of the Night bonus award (2019)

Chan Sung Jung | Fighting Style

Sung Jung is known for his aggressive, violent fighting; hence he was named “The Korean Zombie” for his deadly fights. Unlike other players, who play wild and crazy, Sung Jung is a rare player to keep the fight who expresses themselves with their moves.

All in all, if you search for aggression, deadly matches, he is the one you have been looking for as he knows only to move forward to take the opponent’s soul no matter how his condition is.

Not to leave out, he is a master of Taekwondo, Hapkido, judo, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Overall, he has also set the record to win a fight with a twister submission, which is the first-ever in UFC history.

Michael Bisping on the broadcast team had stated, “We call him the Zombie, but don’t get it wrong, he has tremendous technique.

It’s the fact that it’s the technique combined with the desire to finish every fight. Through the years, he’s become very tactical, and he still believes he can be a champion one day.”

Chan Sung Jung | Highlights and Accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

Ultimate Fighting Championship

    • Submission of the Night (Two times)
    • Knockout of the Night (One time)
    • Fight of the Night (Two times) 
    • Performance of the Night (Three times) 
    • Most fight-night bonuses in the UFC Featherweight division history

World Extreme Cagefighting

    • Fight of the Night (One time)

KoreaFC

    • Korea FC 65 kg Tournament (Winner)

Pancrase

    • Pancrase Korea Neo-Blood Lightweight Tournament (Winner)

Wrestling Observer Newsletter

    • 2010 Fight of the Year 
    • 2012 Fight of the Year (by MMAFighting.com, ESPN MMA Awards, and Bleacher Report)

World MMA Awards

    • 2011 Submission of the Year

Sherdog

    • 2011 All-Violence First Team

Chan Sung Jung | MMA Records & Stats

Total Matches 22
Total Wins 17
Total Losses 6
Matches win/loss by Knockout 6 wins and 3 losses
Matches win/loss by Submission 8 wins and no loss
Matches win/loss by Decision 3 wins 3 losses
SLpM Str. Acc SApM Str. Def TD Avg Sub Avg TD Def TD Acc
3.6 905 189 39 .209 1554 95 136

You can learn more about his stats and fights on Tapology.

Chan Sung Jung | Net Worth, Purse & Career Earnings

As of the year 2022, Chan Sung Jung is reported to have a net worth of $1 million.

So far, he has gained $1.5 million from the UFC fights alongside, and his career’s highest purse money is worth $200k. Besides that, his career earnings amount to $1,212,000.

Additionally, he was previously endorsed by the MMA clothing company and fighter sponsor Tri-Coasta who manufactured his signature “Korean Zombie” t-shirt.

That very t-shirt took people by storm as even President Dana White, alongside longtime UFC commentator, Joe Rogan, was flaunting it.

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Chan Sung Jung | Love Life and Social Media

Sung Jung is a married man with two children. In 2014, he took vows with his longtime girlfriend Park Sun Young, and to date, the duo lives happily with their daughters, Jung Min Seo and Jung Eun Seo.

The couple is often posting their family time together on their social accounts.

Instagram handle @koreanzombiemma
Twitter handle @KoreanZombieMMA

Chan Sung Jung | FAQs

Does really Korean Zombie doesn’t blink?

The Korean Zombie (Chan Sung Jung) really doesn’t blink, and this skill is quite beneficial for him.

What are the predictions in Jung vs Ige?

According to expert predictions, many favor the Korean fighter to win this match.

Who was Chan Sung Jung’s last fight?

The fighter’s last fight was against Dan Ige on June 19, 2021, which he won by a unanimous decision.

What is Chang Sung Jung’s ranking?

Jung’s current ranking is #7 in the featherweight division while his highest ranking was #4.

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