DooHo Choi began his professional career as a 14-1 prospect but saw his momentum come to a screeching halt in 2016. While a Fight of the Year war with Cub Swanson at UFC 206 did no damage to his stock, Choi found himself on a three-fight losing streak spanning three years with subsequent knockout losses to Jeremy Stephens and Charles Jourdain.
Following his loss to Jourdain, Choi took another three years off from the sport to fulfill his mandatory service obligations with the Korean military. All in all, by the time ‘The Korean Superboy’ took the center of the Octagon against Steve Garcia at UFC Vegas 94 it had been eight years since he had last gotten his hand raised.
DooHo Choi Finishes Bill Algeo with a Second-Round TKO at UFC Vegas 94
The Korean Superboy is BACK 💥
Dooho Choi gets the finish in round 2! #UFCVegas94 pic.twitter.com/FAtL6pN5cd
— UFC (@ufc) July 21, 2024
DooHo Choi ended a 38-month-long layoff in early 2023 when he returned to face Kyle Nelson at UFC Vegas 68. Making it to the fight was somewhat of a win in itself but the bout ended with an anticlimactic draw, frustrating Choi and his fans. However, after another year-long layoff, Choi finally returned to his winning ways at UFC Vegas 94 with a second-round comeback knockout of Bill Algeo.
The fight was not always going well for Choi, who was hurt by a spinning back elbow from Algeo in the first round and was out-grappled for the opening five minutes. The Korean turned the tables in the second round, avoiding potential grappling exchanges and allowing himself to get more comfortable with his striking.
After Algeo failed on another spinning attack, Choi landed a perfectly timed counter left hook directly on his opponent’s right eye. Algeo immediately winced and backed against the cage before covering up and tapping out to strike. The commentary team suggested that the 35-year-old potentially suffered a broken orbital but no word was officially released from the fighter or his team.
Emotional Celebration
Shortly after referee Herb Dean stepped in to stop the fight, DooHo Choi let himself feel all of the emotions he had kept inside for nearly a decade. With all the hurdles he has faced that have prevented him from having the career he imagined, Choi broke down into tears while embracing his corner within seconds of the official stoppage.
Choi let himself go in his post-fight Octagon interview, admitting to Daniel Cormier and fans how much the win meant to him after the mental struggles he dealt with since last coming out on top. Choi also emotionally embraced and thanked his longtime friend Chan Sung Jung for being with him in his corner on fight night and by his side for the entire journey.
Embrace with The Korean Zombie
Since the beginning of his UFC career, DooHo Choi’s career has been linked to Chan Sung Jung, commonly referred to as ‘The Korean Zombie.’ After the emotional win, Choi and Jung shared a moment in the cage, having dealt with severe hardship. The two Korean fighters were simultaneously in the UFC from 2014 up until Jung’s retirement in August 2023.
Jung had always served in a mentor role for Choi throughout his career but since hanging up the gloves has devoted more of his time to coaching and promotional work. As Dana White announced in June, Jung launched his promotion 10 months after the final fight of his career called Zombie Fight Night, or ZFN. The organization worked out a deal with the UFC and is currently available to stream on UFC Fight Pass.
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