MMA coach Eddie Cha recently spoke to James Lynch for MiddleEasy.
During the interview, Cha touched on a number of topics, including his interactions with “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung. “Zombie” is training for an August 26 showdown against former UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway.
“I’m hearing he wants to retire, so why not go out with a bang.”
Yesterday, on The MMA Hour, Max spoke to Ariel about the matchup with Korean Zombie.
Max Holloway vs Korean Zombie is now official for Singapore on August 26th. @BlessedMMA / @arielhelwani /#TheMMAHour pic.twitter.com/wMDR4QFHD7
— AFeldmanMMA (@afeldMMA) June 16, 2023
Chan Sung Jung Prepares With Eddie Cha For Max Holloway
Eddie Cha revealed to MiddleEasy how often he is seeing Chan Sung Jung for this fight, given the two have to connect remotely this time.
“Tough fight, but it’s gonna be an exciting fight,” Cha said. “Zombie’s running his camp in Korea and we’re interacting about two, three times week right now.”
The betting odds for this matchup are quite wide. Per BetOnline, Holloway is a -950 betting favorite, while Jung is the +650 underdog. Cha and his team aren’t worried about what the oddsmakers are saying.
“As far as betting odds, I think you’re only as good as your last fight,” Cha said. “They’re gonna go off the Volkanovski fight. He was a five to one dog there, and now he’s like a 10 or 11 to one underdog. Zombie doesn’t care about that kind of stuff.”
Eddie Cha’s Rising Fighters
Cha has some fighters who are looking to earn a UFC contract through the Contender Series. He named those athletes while also given a shoutout to a current member of the UFC roster.
“This Tuesday we have Tracy’s brother ‘JR’ Cortez, he’s on the Contender Series,” Cha said. “We have John Makdessi. So, he’s coming up in Australia. Kasey Tanner, he’s a 6-0 kid. He’s fighting a Brazilian, 13-0, bantamweight. That’s a Contender Series [fight].”
Henry Cejudo’s Recovery
One of the top names Cha works with is former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo. Cha provided an update on “Triple C’s” recovery from a right shoulder tear.
“He’s good, he’s been at the gym pretty much everyday,” Cha said. “Rehabbing it, I believe he got stem cells, I’m not 100 percent sure. He’s good, he’s still driven. Trust me, motivation is not his weakness. I think he’ll be in there real soon.”
