Seung Woo Choi

Choi Seung-woo
Choi Seung-woo
Born	November 3, 1992 (age 34); Gangneung, Gangwon Province, South Korea
Occupation	Mixed martial artist
Years active	2015–2025
Known for	Competing in the featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC)

Choi Seung-woo (; born November 3, 1992), also known as Seung Woo Choi in English, is a South Korean mixed martial artist who has competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) within the featherweight category. He is recognized as a two-time featherweight titleholder in the Top Fighting Championship and earned a bronze medal at the 2010 IFMA World Muaythai Championships.

Background

Starting martial arts training at the age of eight, Choi represented South Korea at the Muay Thai World Championships. He graduated with a bachelor's degree from Yong In University.

Early career

Choi launched his professional MMA journey in 2015, primarily competing across Asian circuits. He captured the featherweight championship twice in Top Fighting Championship and was subsequently signed by the UFC after achieving a 7–1 record and securing his second Top FC featherweight title.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Choi made his UFC debut on April 20, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Oleinik, accepting a short-notice fight against Movsar Evloev but was defeated by unanimous decision. Later, on July 27, 2019, at UFC 240, he faced Gavin Tucker and was submitted in the third round.

His first victory in the UFC came on December 21, 2019, at UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs. The Korean Zombie, where he won by unanimous decision over Suman Mokhtarian. A fight scheduled against Youssef Zalal in October 2020 was canceled for undisclosed reasons.

In February 2021 at UFC Fight Night 184, Choi secured a unanimous decision win over Youssef Zalal following opponent changes. On June 19, 2021, during UFC on ESPN 25, he achieved a first-round knockout against Julian Erosa, which earned him a Performance of the Night award.

In October 2021 at UFC Fight Night 196, Choi was submitted via rear-naked choke by Alex Caceres. He was slated to face Tucker Lutz in March 2022 but withdrew due to injury.

At UFC 275 in June 2022, Choi lost by split decision to Joshua Culibao. In November 2022 at UFC 281, he competed against Michael Trizano in a catchweight bout—Trizano missed weight—and suffered a first-round knockout defeat.

Choi earned a unanimous decision victory over Jarno Errens in August 2023 at UFC Fight Night 225. Though scheduled to fight Morgan Charrière in April 2024, Choi withdrew for unspecified reasons.

In July 2024 at UFC on ESPN 60, Choi was defeated by Steve Garcia via first-round technical knockout. Subsequently, he faced newcomer Kevin Vallejos at UFC Fight Night 254 in March 2025 and lost again by first-round technical knockout.

Following these consecutive losses, Choi was released from the UFC roster on April 9, 2025.

Personal life

Choi experienced the loss of his mother in early 2025.

Mixed martial arts

Ultimate Fighting Championship
- One-time Performance of the Night recipient versus Julian Erosa
Top Fighting Championship
- Two-time Featherweight Champion with victories over Min Gu Lee and Jae Woong Kim

Muay Thai

Competitor representing South Korea on the national Muay Thai team
Achievements at the Muay Thai World Championships
- Secured a bronze medal in 2010

Mixed martial arts record

|- |Loss |align=center|11–8 |Kevin Vallejos |TKO (punches) |UFC Fight Night: Vettori vs. Dolidze 2 |2025-03-15 |align=center|1 |align=center|3:09 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Loss |align=center|11–7 |Steve Garcia |TKO (punches) |UFC on ESPN: Lemos vs. Jandiroba |2024-07-20 |align=center|1 |align=center|1:36 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Win |align=center|11–6 |Jarno Errens |Decision (unanimous) |UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs. The Korean Zombie |2023-08-26 |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Kallang, Singapore | |- |Loss |align=center|10–6 |Michael Trizano |KO (punches) |UFC 281 |2022-11-12 |align=center|1 |align=center|4:51 |New York City, New York, United States | |- |Loss |align=center|10–5 |Joshua Culibao |Decision (split) |UFC 275 |2022-06-11 |align=center|3 |align=center|5:00 |Kallang, Singapore | |- |Loss |align=center|10–4 |Alex Caceres |Submission (rear-naked choke) |UFC Fight Night: Costa vs. Vettori |2021-10-23 |align=center|2 |align=center|3:31 |Las Vegas, Nevada, United States | |- |Win |align=center|10–3 |Julian Erosa |TKO (punches) |"UFC on ESPN: The Korean Zombie vs. Ige" |"2021-06-19" |"1" |"1:37" |"Las Vegas, Nevada, United States" | |- ... [record continues as original] ...

External links