Ryuho Miyaguchi (7-0) vs. Chungreng Koren (7-2)
Ryuho Miyaguchi
Pros:
-Good bodywork
-Good ground and pound
-Dangerous knees
-Good kickboxing
Cons:
-Chin in the air
-Terrible TDD
-Advances recklessly
-Hands low
-Flat-footed
Miyaguchi earned this tournament spot off a win over former UFC fighter Teruto Ishihara, but that result needs context—this is still a low-level win, and he was nearly knocked out in the process. There are some tools to like, but overall, he still feels like a fighter not quite at this level yet.
He’s primarily a striker who prefers operating at range, where he can sit on the outside and fire kicks. His left body kick is sharp, and he can also close distance with some nasty knees when he chooses to step in. There’s decent pop in his hands as well, especially when he commits to combinations.
The bigger concerns are defensive. His takedown defense is clearly vulnerable. Even opponents who aren’t strong grapplers have been able to get him down. On the feet, he’s also hittable when he engages. He tends to leave his hands low, keeps his chin exposed, and doesn’t recover defensively after throwing, which opens him up for counters. His offensive timing is solid, but his ability to exit exchanges safely is not.
Given how easy it is to get him to the mat and the tendency to give up his back under pressure, he’s the type of fighter who can get knocked out or submitted once he’s forced into uncomfortable positions.
Chungreng Koren
Pros:
-Forward pressure
-Heavy ground and pound
-High work rate
Cons:
-Advances recklessly
-Lacks head movement
-Loads up
-No striking
-Throws wide
Koren is taking this fight on short notice, but it’s hard to understand why they couldn’t find someone coming off at least a win. To make matters worse, Koren is coming off a dominant loss to Rabindra Dhant in a tournament fight.
Koren gets most of his success through sheer work rate. He’s not technically going to beat you anywhere, but he constantly pressures forward and tries to break opponents mentally. The issue is that he’s been doing this against lower-level competition, and the one time he fought a quality opponent, he was badly dominated.
Koren wants the fight on the mat, but his lack of wrestling and jiu-jitsu is a major concern. He throws relentless ground-and-pound, though he often does it without maintaining strong positional control. He can bully some lower-level fighters along the cage, but his entries and setups overall are poor.
On the feet, he’s a liability. Koren is easy to hit and sloppy offensively. He’s essentially a marauder-type fighter: someone who relies on relentless forward pressure, ignores traditional defense, and thrives in chaotic exchanges by overwhelming opponents through aggression and attrition.
Prediction:
Miyaguchi is the cleaner and more skilled fighter overall. He has the better striking, cleaner body work, more dangerous kicks, and he’s far more capable at range. Koren’s striking is extremely sloppy. He throws wide, marches forward recklessly, and barely moves his head. If Miyaguchi gets space consistently, he should be able to piece him up with kicks and knees.
Koren’s entire style is based around chaos, pressure, and forcing ugly exchanges. Miyaguchi already struggles with reckless advances, keeps his chin high, and doesn’t exit safely after throwing. Against a fighter constantly crashing forward, that becomes a major issue because Miyaguchi is likely going to be forced into prolonged exchanges instead of comfortably striking at range.
Miyaguchi’s takedown defense is legitimately bad. If low-level grapplers are getting him down consistently, then even Koren’s ugly entries might work eventually just through persistence. Koren doesn’t need clean setups because Miyaguchi gives opportunities through poor balance, reckless offense, and defensive lapses.
If I had to lean one way, I’d slightly favor Miyaguchi. It’s not a confident pick at all because Miyaguchi’s takedown defense and defensive discipline are massive liabilities in a chaotic fight. Koren is coming off a bad loss, and I think he goes on a skid here.
