Now Reading: Chungreng Koren one win away from UFC contract after weight cut
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Chungreng Koren one win away from UFC contract after weight cut
Chungreng Koren, the Manipuri bantamweight known as the Indian Rhino, faces Japan's Ryo Tajima in the Road to UFC Season 5 semifinals in Shanghai on August 28. A win puts him one…
Chungreng Koren, the Manipuri bantamweight known as the Indian Rhino, faces Japan's Ryo Tajima in the Road to UFC Season 5 semifinals in Shanghai on August 28. A win puts him one fight from a UFC contract. Koren, 71 kg in his quarterfinal, is now down to 66-67 kg after three months of proper preparation. In May he missed weight but still submitted Japan's previously unbeaten Ryuho Miyaguchi at 4:00 of the second round with a rear-naked choke.
Koren said his earlier weight issue stemmed from depression and loss of discipline after losing his Matrix Fight Night title to Nepal's Rabindra Dhant in August 2024. He has since trained in Dagestan and Phuket, working with UFC fighters to sharpen his striking and takedown game. Tajima, 11-3, has longer reach and more experience. Koren plans to counter with takedowns. The other semifinal pits Dhant against unbeaten New Zealander Kasib Murdoch, leaving open the possibility of a Koren-Dhant rematch with a UFC contract on the line.
Indian Opinion Analysis
Chungreng Koren enters a familiar route back to the world's biggest MMA promotion: the Road to UFC tournament has launched careers for Indian fighters before, including Anshul Jubli, who won the lightweight edition in 2023. A semifinal win puts Koren one fight away from a contract that carries a base salary of several lakh rupees per bout, with additional win bonuses and performance incentives. The bantamweight division is one of the UFC's deepest, so a debutant must win decisively to earn a second fight. The other semifinal pits Koren's conqueror Rabindra Dhant against an unbeaten prospect, raising the prospect of a title-rematch with far higher stakes. The UFC typically signs the tournament winner and often offers contracts to standout losing finalists. Koren fights on 28 August, and the winner of his bout will face the Dhant-Murdoch victor later this year.
Source: timesofindia.indiatimes.com
This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
