UFC Fight Night: Ortega vs. The Korean Zombie Betting Preview

Everyone is hyped up for the UFC this week after Joaquin Buckley delivered one of the most devastating knockouts we’ve ever seen last week. Buckley’s spinning back kick KO of Impa Kasanganay was seen by tens of millions on social media, and that has millions excited for what we will see this week at UFC Fight Night: Ortega vs. The Korean Zombie. Chan Sung Jung is one of the most feared featherweights of all-time, and he is capable of ending fights in seconds.

UFC Fight Night: Ortega vs. The Korean Zombie will air on Saturday, October 17, in the United States with the prelims starting at 4 p.m. ET and the main card kicking off at 7 p.m. ET. The entirety of the promotion will be broadcast on ESPN Plus.

UFC Fight Night: Ortega vs. The Korean Zombie Betting Odds

Brian Ortega +170

Chan Sung Jung -195

The Korean Zombie was a star in the making before he had to serve his mandatory time in South Korea’s military. Chan Sung Jung knocked out Mark Hominick in just seven seconds at UFC 140, and he earned a shot at the UFC featherweight title after submitting Dustin Poirier in a bout that many called the best fight or best submission in 2012. Unfortunately, he wasn’t able to get past Jose Aldo, and he stepped away from the Octagon for 3.5 years after the loss.

Upon his return from military service, The Korean Zombie showed that he can still deliver highlight reel performances. He knocked out Dennis Bermudez in the first round to earn a Performance of the Night bonus, and then he was involved in a Fight of the Night bout with Yair Rodriguez that saw Jung lose in the very last second due to a knockout. He recovered from that defeat to register first-round TKO wins over Renato Moicano and Frankie Edgar in 2019 though, earning Performance of the Night bonuses with both wins.

Brian Ortega is ranked ahead of The Korean Zombie in the UFC featherweight rankings, but he is a considerable underdog per the UFC betting odds on Saturday. Ortega hasn’t fought since losing a featherweight title bout to Max Holloway by fourth-round TKO at UFC 231 in December 2018, as he had to put off a fight against The Korean Zombie scheduled for last December due to a knee injury.

Before that defeat, Ortega had won six straight bouts, including wins over Moicano, Edgar, and Cub Swanson. He earned Performance of the Night or Fight of the Night bonuses for all three victories.

There is a lot of bad blood between these two fighters as Ortega was thrown out of UFC 248 after allegedly slapping The Korean Zombie’s translator. Ortega will be at a bit of a disadvantage too as his coach was unable to come to Fight Island after testing positive for COVID-19.

Katlyn Chookagian +131

Jessica Andrade -151

Originally, Andrade was supposed to take on Jessica Eye at this event, but Eye wasn’t able to compete due to injury. That led to the former UFC women’s strawweight champion taking on Katlyn Chookagian in her stead.

Andrade has lost her last two bouts ahead of this fight. She won the strawweight belt last year with a vicious second-round knockout of Rose Namajunas, but she surrendered the title in a stunning 42-second TKO at the hands of Zhang Weili in Shenzhen, China last August. Andrade was hoping to bounce back against Namajunas at UFC 251, but she lost a split decision in July and missed out on a rematch with Weili as a result. She will be moving to flyweight to take on Chookagian.

The current MMA betting odds show Chookagian as an underdog ahead of this bout, but she has won three of her last four fights. Those three victories all went the distance though, and she suffered a TKO defeat at the hands of Valentina Shevchenko with the UFC women’s flyweight belt on the line at UFC 247 in February. It’s hard to have faith in Chookagian at this price, as she has yet to defeat an elite foe.

Jim Crute -330

Modestas Bukauskas +270

Crute is one of the biggest favorites on the card this Saturday. He is seen as an up and comer with a 3-1 record since joining UFC, and his lone loss was to Misha Cirkunov. Crute submitted Michal Oleksiejczuk with a kimura for a Performance of the Night bonus back in February, and that was the second time he picked up a win with that submission. All four of his UFC fights have been settled within the distance, and three were decided in the first round.

We saw Bukauskas make his promotion debut in July, and he forced Andreas Michailidis to retire at the end of the first round. That brought his record to 11-2, and he has now won seven straight bouts. His last five wins have come by TKO or KO, and he doesn’t have a refined submission game like Crute. He does not want to end up on the ground in this one.

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