Korean Falcon eyes championship title in return to PFL

Jo Sung-bin, right, fights with Tyler Diamond in a Professional Fighters League (PFL) fight in April 2021. [PROFESSIONAL FIGHTERS LEAGUE]

Mixed martial artist Jo Sung-bin will start his bid to win the Professional Fighters League (PFL) championship title with his first fight of the season in Las Vegas on Saturday.

Jo, known as the Korean Falcon, is the first and only Korean in the PFL, an American MMA league in which 60 athletes compete across six weight divisions: Featherweight, women's lightweight, lightweight, welterweight, light heavyweight and heavyweight.

Ten fighters compete in each of the six weight divisions this season, as opposed to 12 last season.

Jo competes in the featherweight division and made his league debut in 2021.

“I obviously want to win the upcoming fight on April 1 in style without injuries and my ultimate objective is to become a champion,” Jo said in an interview with the Korea JoongAng Daily on March 24.

The 30-year-old Korean fighter previously competed in the more famous Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) before moving to the PFL. Although both are MMA leagues, the PFL has adopted a structure similar to other professional sports with a postseason and championship.

PFL fighters in each of the six divisions earn three points when they win a fight, with the top four fighters in the standings advancing to the playoffs.

“I highly admire the PFL that runs a $1-million tournament for each weight division, unlike other leagues,” Jo said. “The things I consider most important when it comes to competing in the tournament are fitness and not getting injured.”

While the overall scale may be different to UFC, the PFL is a tough league to fight in, even for a UFC veteran.

“I feel like the PFL is tougher because I have to fight every two months," Jo said. "That said, fighting is what I live for, so I like it better."

Jo decided to become a fighter after watching Japanese boxing anime “The Fighting” when he was in middle school.

“The protagonist was so cool because he set his goal, worked hard every day and ultimately achieved it,” Jo said. “I wanted to do some exercise again since I had quit Taekwondo at that time and I started going to an MMA gym in town.”

MMA has recently gained some popularity in Korea.

“ZombieTrip: Looking for a fighter” by Korean fighter Jung Chan-sung — a YouTube series released last year in which aspiring fighters spar with pro Park Mun-ho — gained over 10 million views.

“I feel like the level of awareness of MMA in Korea has grown,” Jo said. “Fighting-related content on TV is continually emerging and that exposure in turn will elevate the awareness.”

Korea’s own fighting leagues were established in the 2010s, including the Double G FC and the Road Fighting Championship, which helped expand the fighting industry here.

Korea even hosted a UFC event in 2015, drawing in over 12,000 spectators.

The MMA can be a difficult sport to understand, but Jo thinks that the key to enjoying it is to know the skills involved in the fights.

“I can guarantee that watching fights will be more interesting if you experience MMA at an MMA gymnasium and get to know the skills,” Jo said.

Jo heads to the ring on Saturday having recently recovered from an injury that forced him to miss the entirety of last season. Despite the injury, he continued to train hard to prepare for this season.

“I do not exercise lightly just because it is the offseason,” Jo said. “I focus more on my fitness during the season and go through suitable training as I analyze my opponents.”

Jo is set to compete in his first fight of the season against Jesus Pinedo of Peru.

The Korean Falcon’s ultimate goal is to win the championship, which Loren Mack, vice president of corporate communications at the PFL sees as a possibility.

“He is certainly the athlete to watch," Mack told the Korea JoongAng Daily. "I wouldn’t be surprised if he took on the championship."

PFL fights will be broadcast in Korea through IB Sports. Jo’s first fight of the season will be broadcast on Sunday in Korea.

The season will then continue through to the fall. Last season, the playoffs took place in August and the final championship was held in November.

BY PAIK JI-HWAN [paik.jihwan@joongang.co.kr]