Korean Zombie Is Back From The Dead & Wants BJ Penn

One of the most exciting and creative fighters on the UFC roster is set to make a big comeback. After a gruelling war against Jose Aldo at UFC 163, Chan Sung Jung stepped away from the sport of mixed martial arts. Joining the military as part of his mandatory service to his home country of South Korea, ‘Korean Zombie’ has now completed his two-year uniformed stint. Gaining notoriety for arguably the most exciting fight in WEC history, Jung first signed to the UFC in 2011.

Facing Leonard Garcia in his first fight for the UFC, ‘KZ’ got his revenge after a controversial split decision loss in the WEC. Scoring the first and only twister submission in UFC history, ‘Korean Zombie’ became an overnight sensation. Next was his seven-second destruction of Mark Hominick at UFC 140. Then came his fight of the year winning submission victory over Dustin Poirier. Jung submitted ‘Diamond’ before stepping in for Anthony Pettis against Jose Aldo at UFC 163.

Injuries & Return

‘KZ’ and Aldo suffered a litany of harrowing injuries during their battle of attrition in 2013. Falling victim to a dislocated shoulder during the encounter, Jung was finished by TKO in the fourth round. With his two years military service now in the bag, ‘Korean Zombie’ tells Monsterzym he wants to fight BJ Penn:

“In the past six months I’ve been concentrating on rehabbing my previous injuries in preparation for my return to fighting. I’m trying not to rush my rehab. Since I’ve had two surgeries on my shoulders I’ve been concentrating on getting them healthy again. For the past six months there’s a fighter I’ve been wanting to fight–BJ Penn. When the Penn vs. (Ricardo) Lamas fight was announced I thought I’d missed my opportunity. I think it would be great timing if BJ Penn and I were ready to come back at the same time.”