Welterweight bout set for Oct. 23 at TFC 24
Seol said to have sharpened skills, focus since last year
Influencer-turned-fighter Seol Young-ho is set to take the TFC stage against Japanese veteran Watanabe Yuta.
The two will meet at TFC 24 Break Through, scheduled for Oct. 23 at Texpa Hall on the third floor of the Textile Center in Gangnam-gu, Seoul. It will mark Watanabe's debut on a Korean card.
The matchup has drawn attention for the contrast it presents: Seol's physicality and aggression against Watanabe's experience and ring generalship.
Watanabe, who carries a record of 23 wins and 13 losses, acknowledged Seol's threat while expressing confidence in his own chances. "He's extremely dangerous, strong and physically gifted," Watanabe said of his opponent. He cited his wealth of competitive experience as his key advantage. "You never know until you're in there, but I can promise it won't be a boring fight from round one," he said. Asked to predict the outcome, he was blunt: "I win."
Seol has an unusual background — he turned professional with no amateur experience, having taken up fighting after appearing on a combat sports entertainment program. He went on to win bouts in Double G FC and Ring Championship, and also claimed victory in an open-weight contest at Road FC ARC, an amateur event.
A back injury kept him out of a scheduled fight this year. During the layoff, he studied footage of his own bouts and other mixed martial arts matches to refine his game plan, and resumed full training about three months ago.
Hwang Seon-muk, TFC's general director, said after watching Seol train through the YouTube channel Geoktu Lifestyle that his conditioning looked "extremely good." Drawing on assessments from people at Korean Top Team, Hwang said Seol had improved not only in stamina and fighting spirit compared with last year, but also in focus and technical execution.
"Seol Young-ho's momentum has been building strongly lately," Hwang said. "Will it be his relentless aggression and sharpness, or the veteran's seasoned game management and counters? It's a matchup I'm really looking forward to."
yjc@heraldcorp.com
