Ji Yeon Kim had plenty working against her at UFC on ABC 4.
Kim (9-7-2 MMA, 3-7 UFC) lost a split decision to Mandy Bohm (8-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) this past Saturday at Spectrum Center in Charlotte, N.C., but the setback didn’t come without controversy.
Kim was docked two points in a fight that was stopped after Bohm was rendered unable to continue following an illegal knee from Kim. The stoppage came at 1:55 of Round 3, and the fight was scored before its entirety. Kim was deducted her first point at the end of the second round when she kicked Bohm off of her after the bell sounded.
According to Kim, she entered the fight with a torn ACL but was set on competing regardless. She took to her Instagram Stories to extensively comment on the fight, taking aim at Bohm for being unable to continue. Kim explained that she kicked Bohm off her for a reason.
“It’s lame, but if I have to make an excuse of the outcome, as everyone can see from the fact that I went to the fight wearing knee pads on,” Kim wrote. “I prepared for this fight for three months at first and another four months due to Mandy’s unilateral cancellation of the first dated match. I prepared for this fight with a completely torn ACL in my knee for a total of seven months. My knee is still in the worst condition than anyone can imagine. I just didn’t show it to the point even my corners couldn’t tell during the fight. And despite every medical staff telling me I needed surgery, and needed 7-12 months at least to recover after surgery, yet I took the fight because I wanted to put on a show for everyone.
“For people asking why I didn’t strike with Mandy and not listening to my coach because I just couldn’t stand still, my knee pulled out of it’s position giving me such pain in the middle of the very first round, that’s why I decided to grapple with her instead, and I didn’t want to risk myself to be in a situation where my knee totally pulls out making me unable to continue, which has happened numerous times during this long training camp.”
Check out Kim’s full statement below:
🚨| Ji Yeon Kim has released the following statement after her controversial #UFCCharlotte loss to Mandy Bohm.😳 pic.twitter.com/x3KCTYrHlV
— MMA Orbit (@mma_orbit) May 15, 2023
Kim now has dropped five consecutive fights, which has her questioning her future. The 33-year-old South Korean fighter hasn’t notched a win since a knockout of Nadia Kassem in October 2019. Meanwhile, Bohm picked up her first octagon win after dropping her first two to Ariane Lipski and Victoria Leonardo.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 4.