Dong Guk Shin and Hyun Woo Kim secure victories at Road FC 78

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Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day. We have had some wild ones already this year, but I can say without hesitation that arguably the craziest fight you’ll see in 2026 just went down in South Korea. (Big thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KOs, and to @Grabaka_Hitman for uploading many of the clips you see here. Give them a follow and chip in on Patreon if you can.) Dong Guk Shin vs. Hyeon Bin Park “The Korean Zombie” Chan Sung Jung set the bar so high for his countrymen with his legendary career, but to South Korea’s credit, I swear there’s at least a half dozen fights a year there that feature two dudes just slugging it out with no regard for their bodies. Case in point, Dong Guk Shin vs. Hyeon Bin Park at Road FC 78: Presented without comment Shin Dong-Guk vs. Park Hyeon-Bin #ROADFC78 pic.twitter.com/ModQ3kfqVQ — caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) August 29, 2026 It’s this or Josh Hokit vs. Curtis Blaydes, those are my two options right now. As you can see from caposa’s highlight clip, Shin and Park absolutely ripped each other to shreds. Even when the fight went to the ground, strikes were still being thrown to finish, control and cardio be damned. If I’m scoring this correctly, the fighters exchanged knockdowns in THE FIRST FIFTEEN SECONDS of the fight. Park even scored a second knockdown about a minute later, but somehow it’s Shin who went on to outlast him? And I do mean outlast, because the result was simply decided by which fighter had anything left in the gas tank by the end of the round. Shin showed negative technique in this fight and yet he was the one with more pop in his punches as time ticked away. Like, his head was down the entire fight and he was throwing nothing but hooks. A formula for success as it turns out. Completely inexplicable and utterly delightful. Watch the whole thing for yourself on Road FC’s YouTube channel. And while you’re there, tip your cap to Hyun Woo Kim and Ji Yong Yang, who had a brawl of their own that I guess is pretty tame by comparison. Hyun Woo Kim just absolutely bodied Ji Yong Yang to claim the Road FC bantamweight strap. My god#ROADFC78 pic.twitter.com/ZOMFrL1phk — caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) August 29, 2026 There’s gotta be something in the water in Seoul. Vadim Rolich vs. Islam Zhangorazov You know, I was critical of Shin’s technique, but Vadim Rolich might have been worse. At BetCity Fight Nights 140 in Minsk, Belarus, Rolich desperately went for a takedown and didn’t give up on it even when it became obvious he was nowhere close to securing Islam Zhangorazov’s hips. Zhangorazov took advantage, lifting his knee up into Rolich’s face and accepting the free knockout. What a nasty knee KO by Vadim Rolich#FightNights140 pic.twitter.com/vs65v3UEAc — caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) August 27, 2026 Send this man to Dagestan, because he could use a few wrestling tips from Team Khabib. Sean Polk vs. Edgar Mixan Sean Polk survives the early assault and finishes Edgar Mixan in round 2!!! pic.twitter.com/K7uLOwrp3m — Spectation Sports (@SpectationNet) August 30, 2026 Great composure shown here by amateur welterweight Sean Polk, from his Fusion Fight League fight against Edgar Mixan. Early in the second round, Mixan was putting it on Polk, but the Missoula, Mont., native kept his cool and executed perfectly once he created enough separation for a head kick. Polk, 19, is now 5-0 as an amateur, with FFL titles at welterweight and middleweight to his name. Chuy Rodriguez vs. Jarred Gonzales Ranna Cortez vs. Raissa Pacheco Over on the submission side of the game, we had a couple of beauties from Chuy Rodriguez and Ranna Cortez. Rodriguez made a successful pro debut at LFA 240, slickly transitioning to offense after being slammed by fellow first-timer Jarred Gonzales. In an instant, Gonzales went from the aggressor to having to defend against an arm-guillotine choke that proved to be his undoing. Chuy Rodriguez snatches up a slick mounted one-arm guillotine to sub Jarred Gonzales #LFA240 pic.twitter.com/GHusry4y3Z — caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) August 28, 2026 All LFA events stream live on Vice TV. Over on UFC Fight Pass, Ranna Cortez broke out a rare submission as she straight bullied her way to a win over Raissa Pacheco at Shooto Brasil 139. Ranna Cortez finishes Raissa Pacheco with a forearm choke #ShootoBrasil139 pic.twitter.com/vJipLhuT6I — caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) August 28, 2026 Cortez was probably going to finish with ground-and-pound anyway, but she did Pacheco a favor by giving her an excuse to tap out. I mean, the favor came in the form of a forearm pressing down on her windpipe, but a favor nonetheless. And now, how about some one-shot knockouts to close out the show? Emil Kuzmich vs. Maxim Fedorov Wayne Godfrey vs. Antonio Serafin Andrew Alvara vs. Julian Perez Armando Gutierrez Jr. vs. Clark Ginn At the prestigious-sounding Ural FC: Governor’s Cup of Perm Krai in Russia, Emil Kuzmich squared Maxim Fedorov up and put him all the way down with an overhand right. View this post on Instagram Amateur bantamweight Wayne Godfrey was considerably less elegant, just walking down Antonio Serafin and whalloping him for a first-round KO. From PRO FC Belize: 2⃣0⃣ Wayne Godfrey, PRO FC 23 pic.twitter.com/R7HRsI2jpz — Barrele la pierna (@Barrelelapierna) August 31, 2026 And then at Anthony Pettis FC 25 (replay available on UFC Fight Pass) in Albuquerque, N.M., we had not one, but two notable one-hitter quitters. Andrew Alvara used a cheeky bit of footwork to clobber Julian Perez, literally stepping on his foot before landing the fight-ending punch. Andrew Alvara brutally knocks out Julian Perez. Held him in place stepping on his foot and launched that overhand left. #APFC25 pic.twitter.com/6puaD8kzsm — caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) August 31, 2026 That kind of thing might be illegal in boxing, but in MMA, it’s pretty sweet and I’d love to see that inventiveness more at the UFC level. The most sudden of all these knockouts belongs to Armando Gutierrez Jr. He stepped forward with a thudding right, beating Clark Ginn to the punch by a second to earn a walk-off finish. Armando Gutierrez Jr with an absolute missile of a right hand to KO Clark Ginn in the 2nd round #APFC25 pic.twitter.com/f336g0RUPP — caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) August 30, 2026 Jeandrick Croes vs. Jared McLoughlin APFC wasn’t all about the KOs though. I’d be remiss if I didn’t give some shine to Aruba’s Jeandrick Croes, who defeated Jared McLoughlin with a gnarly choke. Jeandrick Croes wins by submission in round 1! [ #APFC25 | Live on UFC Fight Pass ] pic.twitter.com/SGg049NCUy — UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) August 31, 2026 Listen, I have to get this out of my system… Aruba… Jamaica… OOH I WANT TO CHOKE YA Thank you. If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on X — @AlexanderKLee — using the hashtag #MissedFists.