Deok-Jin Seo solidified his status as a rising force in the Universal Reality Combat Championship (URCC), securing a convincing unanimous decision victory over Henry Anduque at the URCC Fight Club held recently at G Side Night Club in Tomas Morato, Quezon City.
Already a familiar face in the Philippine grassroots mixed martial arts scene, the South Korean star lived up to the hype in the heavyweight main event as he showcased a versatile offensive arsenal, combining thunderous striking with clinical takedowns to keep the Filipino stalwart off-balance throughout the bout.
“Great win. I focused on my counters and I’m happy to get the victory,” Seo said, adding that he is setting his sights on a bigger challenge.
“I want to challenge one of the country’s best heavyweights, Sugar ‘The Mammoth’ Estroso. I will train hard for that.”
URCC president Alvin Aguilar lauded the Korean’s performance, noting that the victory puts Seo on a collision course with Estroso for the heavyweight throne.
“It was a hell of a fight. We’re thankful to all the fighters who put up quality performances,” Aguilar said.
“We are looking forward to Seo’s potential challenge to Estroso next. It’s going to be a classic, thrilling matchup.”
Rufino Mante and Albert Patindol also hogged the limelight as they came out victorious over their respective opponents in contrasting fashion.
Mante won by a third-round technical knockout win over Arsenio Balisacan in their bantamweight showdown while Patindol beat veteran striker Rene Catalan into kimura submission in Round 2 of their flyweight bout.
Catalan, however, contested the fight outcome, denying that he did not tap out and is now asking for a rematch with Patindol.