Korean Zombie Facing A Year Out After Surgeries On Shoulder And Eye
It certainly seems like the injury bug is still going strong in MMA, as The Korean Zombie takes a year’s worth in his UFC 163 title bout fight against Featherweight champ Jose Aldo.
KZ suffered a dislocated shoulder and a fractured orbital bone in his title attempt, injuries that will likely see the 145 lb. contender out for a year or more.
A broken foot also accompanied the injuries, both requiring surgery. That’s a laundry list of nasty war wounds for Jung to deal with. Having recently been out of action for 15 months due to shoulder surgery, a 12-month layoff could be an optimistic figure.
In the wake of the fight, Aldo also suffered a broken foot, as well as a hospitalising case of kidney stones. Maybe they should have called this fight ‘The Great War’, and it may well have had that label if it wasn’t so anticlimactic.
Of course all this depends on how fast KZ recovers, according to his manager Brian Rhee:
“Most likely, he’ll be out a year,” Rhee said, “but that depends on how rehab goes.”
After receiving the title shot due to Anthony Pettis’ injury, KZ has paid a high price. Pettis went on to replace TJ Grant at UFC 164’s main event against Benson Henderson. Noticing a pattern here?
So what’s the best move for the 145lb. division now? I think that Aldo should go up to 155 for the winner of Pettis vs. Bendo, and open the FW division up for the long queue of contenders waiting there. What do you think?
