'Kim Dong-hyun's student' Ko Seok-hyun, match-up secured on July 19 ahead of 'August wedding'... Aims for third consecutive UFC victory against Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani

*This content was translated by AI.

'Korean Tyson' Ko Seok-hyun (32) is set to challenge for a third consecutive UFC victory just before his wedding.

Ko Seok-hyun, a student of 'Stun Gun' Kim Dong-hyun, will face 'Mufasa' Jean-Paul Lebosnoyani (27, USA) in a welterweight (77.1kg) bout at 'UFC Fight Night: Du Plessis vs. Usman' on July 19 (Korean time) at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA.

This marks his return after eight months since his victory over Phil Rowe in November last year. A bout against Jacoby Smith was scheduled for February but was postponed due to a Galbi bone injury, delaying his comeback. Ko Seok-hyun, who is set to marry in early August, plans to fight before the wedding and then go on his honeymoon.

This is a matchup between fighters who emerged from Dana White's Contender Series (DWCS). Ko Seok-hyun signed with UFC through DWCS in 2024, while Lebosnoyani signed in 2025. Ko Seok-hyun (13 wins, 2 losses) is on a two-fight winning streak after defeating Evan Elliott and Phil Rowe. Lebosnoyani (10 wins, 2 losses) also defeated Phil Rowe via split decision in his UFC debut in February.

Different grappling styles will clash. Ko Seok-hyun has trained in judo since childhood and won a gold medal at the 2017 Combat Sambo World Championships (FIAS). Lebosnoyani, a jiu-jitsu black belt, received early combat sports training from his father, Nerses 'Nono' Lebosnoyani, who trained under Helio Gracie, one of the founders of jiu-jitsu. Nono was the coach of Horacio Gracie, who won the UFC 1, 2, and 4 Openweight Tournaments.

Ko Seok-hyun will test his grappling against a jiu-jitsu black belt. In his previous two fights, Ko recorded 10 takedowns and controlled the fight from a dominant position for 23 minutes and 25 seconds out of a 30-minute bout. Lebosnoyani recorded 3 takedowns against Phil Rowe in his UFC debut and controlled the fight from a dominant position for 5 minutes and 17 seconds.

If Ko Seok-hyun is a strategist who secures victories based on his superior conditioning and grappling, Lebosnoyani is an aggressive fighter who seeks finishes through various methods. While 7 of Ko's 13 wins came by decision, 8 of Lebosnoyani's 10 wins are finishes. He has recorded 5 submission wins and 3 (T)KO victories.

Recently, Ko Seok-hyun has been improving his skills by simultaneously conducting overseas training camps and hosting overseas fighters for training sessions alongside his mentor Kim Dong-hyun. He traveled to Ireland to train with former UFC Featherweight and Lightweight champion Conor McGregor, and recently invited former UFC Welterweight champion Tyron Woodley to Korea for training.

Ko Seok-hyun is preparing for the fight under the guidance of Lee Jeong-won, manager of Habas MMA, with whom he has worked for a long time. He is training alongside his teammate 'Frogman' Kim Sang-wook, the runner-up in the Lightweight division of ROAD TO UFC Season 4. About two weeks before the fight, he will travel to the United States to train at the Las Vegas UFC Performance Institute (PI) to adjust to the time difference, before heading to Oklahoma City, where the fight will take place during fight week.

The main event of the tournament will feature a matchup between former UFC champions. Former UFC Middleweight (83.9kg) champion Dricus Du Plessis (32, South Africa) and former UFC Welterweight champion Kamaru Usman (39, USA/Nigeria) will face off in the middleweight division. Du Plessis is ranked second in the Meta UFC Middleweight rankings, while Usman is ranked 10th in the Welterweight division.

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*This content was translated by AI.