Road FC welterweight champion Yoon Tae-young has been named to South Korea's national team for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games.
The Korea MMA Federation, which selects national team athletes for mixed martial arts, announced Monday it had secured an additional entry quota in the 77kg traditional division and would add Yoon to the squad.
Yoon holds the welterweight title in Road FC, South Korea's major MMA promotion, and is regarded as one of its marquee fighters for his skills inside the cage as well as his public profile. His professional record stands at nine wins and three losses.
With Yoon's addition, South Korea's Asian Games MMA contingent now numbers three athletes, joining previously selected Choi Eun-seok (71kg modern) and Lee Bo-mi (54kg modern). Yoon is no stranger to national team duty, having competed at the Asian MMA Championships in May.
The Korea MMA Federation said securing the additional quota was the result of diplomatic efforts — the product of persistent requests the federation made to the Asian MMA Association (AMMA), the governing body for MMA at the Asian Games.
The decision to select Yoon directly, without holding a separate trials tournament, was made in light of the approaching competition schedule and injury concerns. Federation President Jeong Mun-hong said, "If we narrow down the candidates and hold a selection tournament for the Asian Games, there will realistically be injury issues. So we consulted with AMMA and confirmed Yoon Tae-young as our athlete."
MMA makes its debut as an official Asian Games discipline at this year's edition, with six gold medals to be decided Oct. 22 at Nae Sports Center in Nagoya, Japan.
yjc@heraldcorp.com
