Dan Ige is targeting the upper echelon of the featherweight division.
Ige (15-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) is coming off a 22-second “Performance of the Night” knockout of Gavin Tucker at UFC Fight Night 187, and has won seven of his past eight. Now he says he’s ready to kickstart a run toward title contention.
Currently ranked eighth in the UFC’s official featherweight rankings, Ige has doubled down on his callout of fan-favorite Chan Sung Jung (16-6 MMA, 6-3 UFC), a matchup that he says will deliver guaranteed fireworks.
“I’ve kinda let just let the fans and the media create some buzz around it,” Ige told MMA Junkie. “I’m no matchmaker, but it definitely makes sense. ‘Zombie,’ he’s in the top-five echelon and obviously I’m aiming towards the title and, in order to get to the title, I gotta beat guys in that top five. But Dana said, I’ll say it, I’m a guy that’ll fight anyone. I don’t shy away from any challenge.
“I took on Gavin Tucker, who was a big risk for me and he didn’t have a number next to his name, but I’m not moaning or groaning or complaining about it. I love a challenge, so I think the Zombie fight makes a lot of sense. He’s a guy that comes in, he’s literally a zombie. If you look at my style, you can call me a zombie as well. I’ve never been finished, I can take a shot if I need to, and I always come forward, so that’s just a sick fight.”
“The Korean Zombie” is coming off a unanimous decision loss to Brian Ortega in October that pumped the brakes on his championship aspirations. He’s been anxious to compete, even teasing a possible move to lightweight, but an unscathed Ige is happy face him after his wife gives birth to their son, who they’re expecting any day now.
Dan Ige hoping to book ‘sick fight’ with ‘The Korean Zombie’
