Things got a little heated between Seungwoo Choi and Josh Culibao during Friday’s UFC 275 weigh-in.
Whether that would carry over into their featured preliminary card featherweight fight on Saturday in Singapore remained to be seen. But it certainly made the bout one worthy of keeping an eye on.
There was plenty of action to start the fight, though both men appeared to be finding their range early. Choi broke out a number of kicks; Culibao just missed on a left hook. Another left would hit home for Culibao a moment later, but Choi ate it, and continued to walk his opponent down. Choi connected with a kick to the thigh, and Culibao fired a head kick. It was a left hand, however, that rocked Choi, who quickly shook it off.
With just over a minute remaining, the pair began trading in the pocket, with Choi rocked multiple times! Choi somehow hung on, eating a barrage of hammer fists when Culibao pounced on him by the fest. Somehow, Choi even battled back, teeing off on Culibao and forcing him to backpedal!
A fiery end to the opening round — heading into the second, the question had become, who could recover first?
Choi opened round two with a low kick. A right hook landed for him just under a minute in. Culibao blocked a high kick, and fired a jab. He doubled up on his jab, and Choi backed off. Culibao switched stances; moments later, he dropped Choi! The South Korean rolled over on top of himself, but made it back up and managed to stay in the fight. Chin? Choi certainly had an iron one.
Seung Woo Choi snapped a head kick that was blocked but still sounded harsh. Culibao, meanwhile, continued to switch stances, keeping Choi from finding his rhythm. Culibao caught Choi with a right, backing him up. Well, a step or two anyway.
This fight is BANANAS 🍌
[ #UFC275 | Prelims LIVE on ESPN2 & @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/2BsqPQD2ip
— UFC (@ufc) June 12, 2022
Through two rounds, Seung Woo Choi vs. Josh Culibao had been an action-packed fight. The third was no exception. Culibao tagged Choi just under two minutes in. He’d already been winning the stand-up battles, and takedowns had rarely come into play, though they would clinch up near the midway mark of the round. In the end, went they did go to the ground, Choi managed to take the back and lock on a body triangle. He got under the chin more than once, forcing Culibao to fight hands and stave off a submission. Culibao would make it to the buzzer, and pick up the win on the scorecards off the strength of his first two rounds.
Official Result: Josh Culibao def. Seung Woo Choi by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
