Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Super Bowl LI Weekend & Jung’s Return
3. Quick Stats
4. Main Event: Jung KOs Bermudez
5. Oezdemir’s Debut, Three Marijuana Positives & The Card
6. Full Results
7. Bonuses & Awards
8. Records & Milestones
9. Legacy & Impact
10. FAQ
Introduction
UFC Fight Night 104: Bermudez vs. The Korean Zombie took place on Saturday, February 4, 2017 at Toyota Center in Houston, Texas — broadcast live on Fox Sports 1 to 1.15 million average viewers (1.28M peak, 834k prelims). The card drew 8,119 fans for a gate of $611,133. It was held on Super Bowl LI weekend: the Super Bowl took place at NRG Stadium in Houston on February 5, the night after the UFC Fight Night. The main event was Chan Sung Jung — ‘The Korean Zombie’ — returning after 3.5 years of mandatory South Korean military service, facing Dennis Bermudez.
Jung stopped Bermudez with a massive uppercut at 2:49 of round one and earned Performance of the Night. Jessica Andrade and Angela Hill earned Fight of the Night. Marcel Fortuna earned the other Performance of the Night. Three fighters — Curtis Blaydes, Niko Price, and Abel Trujillo — tested positive for marijuana; Blaydes and Price had their results overturned to No Contests by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
Super Bowl LI Weekend & Jung’s Return
Houston’s Toyota Center hosted the UFC’s Super Bowl weekend card on February 4, 2017 — the night before Super Bowl LI at NRG Stadium on February 5. The proximity of the two events produced commercial opportunity: Super Bowl week brings a large entertainment-seeking crowd to the host city. The 1.15M viewership reflected the Super Bowl city audience boost combined with the genuine commercial pull of Chan Sung Jung’s return.
Jung’s 3.5-year absence was mandatory military service required of all South Korean male citizens. He had last fought at UFC 163 in August 2013, losing to Jose Aldo in his title challenge. During his service, his MMA-related injuries qualified him for government office duty rather than field service, allowing him to commute from home and continue training at lower intensity. His return was widely anticipated in the global MMA community.
Quick Stats
📅 Date: Saturday, February 4, 2017 (Super Bowl LI weekend — Super Bowl LI in Houston Feb 5)
📍 Venue: Toyota Center, Houston, Texas
👥 Attendance: 8,119
💰 Gate: $611,133
📺 Broadcast: Fox Sports 1 — 1.15M avg. viewers (1.28M peak, 834k prelims)
🏆 Main Event: Dennis Bermudez vs. Chan Sung Jung — Featherweight (Jung returning after 3.5 years; last fought August 2013 at UFC 163 vs. Aldo)
✅ Result: Jung def. Bermudez via KO (uppercut) — R1, 2:49 (PoN $50k; absorbed early shots then landed massive uppercut to KO)
Main Event: Jung KOs Bermudez
Bermudez entered the fight having won nine of his last eleven UFC appearances, including back-to-back decision wins over Tatsuya Kawajiri and Rony Jason. He was a top-ten UFC FW with legitimate contendership credentials. Jung’s 3.5-year absence had produced the standard ring-rust narrative. The opening exchanges seemed to validate the concern: Bermudez landed significant strikes that visibly rocked Jung early.
Jung’s durability and competitive instinct proved fully intact. He absorbed the early damage, found his timing, and landed a massive uppercut to Bermudez’s chin at 2:49 of round one. The finish was emphatic: the full-extension uppercut precision that Jung had always possessed, deployed on his first competitive opportunity in 1,274 days. His Houston return validated the narrative that mandatory military service had not diminished his elite FW finishing quality.
Oezdemir’s Debut, Three Marijuana Positives & The Card
Volkan Oezdemir’s UFC debut split decision over Ovince Saint Preux was the card’s other notable result. Oezdemir — a Swiss fighter of Turkish descent from Cage Warriors and other European promotions — defeated OSP in a competitive LHW fight. His debut was retrospectively significant: he subsequently won four consecutive UFC fights and earned a UFC LHW title shot against Daniel Cormier at UFC 220 in January 2018 — one of the most rapid debut-to-title-shot timelines in UFC LHW history.
The card’s post-event story was three marijuana positives: Curtis Blaydes (vs. Milstead), Niko Price (vs. Morono), and Abel Trujillo (vs. Vick). The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation applied 90-day suspensions and $1,000 fines to all three. Blaydes’ win over Milstead and Morono’s win over Price were overturned to No Contests. None of the three faced USADA sanctions because all three were below the 150 ng/ml threshold that triggers a USADA suspension. Justin Ledet had been pulled from the card before the event for a contaminated supplement USADA positive.
Full Results
Main Card (Fox Sports 1)
Chan Sung Jung def. Dennis Bermudez — KO (uppercut) — R1, 2:49 — Featherweight (PoN $50k; 3.5-year return from military service; absorbed early shots; massive uppercut finish)
Felice Herrig def. Alexa Grasso — Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) — Women’s Strawweight (Grasso unusually passive)
James Vick def. Abel Trujillo — Submission (D’Arce choke) — R3, 0:49 — Lightweight (Trujillo marijuana positive; 90-day TDLR suspension; no USADA sanction)
Volkan Oezdemir def. Ovince Saint Preux — Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28) — LHW (OEZDEMIR’S UFC DEBUT; future LHW title challenger)
Marcel Fortuna def. Anthony Hamilton — KO (punch) — R1, 3:10 — Heavyweight (PoN $50k; Fortuna debut KO)
Jessica Andrade def. Angela Hill — Unanimous Decision (30-27x3) — Women’s SBW (FotN $50k each; Andrade building SBW contendership)
Preliminary Card (Fox Sports 1 / UFC Fight Pass)
Curtis Blaydes def. Adam Milstead — TKO R2, 0:59 — HW → OVERTURNED TO NO CONTEST (Blaydes marijuana positive; 90-day TDLR suspension; no USADA sanction)
Chas Skelly def. Chris Gruetzemacher — Sub — R2, 2:01 — FW
Ricardo Ramos def. Michinori Tanaka — UD — FW
Tecia Torres def. Bec Rawlings — Women’s SBW (Rawlings missed weight)
Khalil Rountree Jr. def. Daniel Jolly — LHW
Alex Morono vs. Niko Price — NO CONTEST (Price marijuana positive; Morono’s win overturned)
Bonuses & Awards
🥇 Fight of the Night: Jessica Andrade + Angela Hill — $50,000 each
🥇 Performance of the Night: Chan Sung Jung + Marcel Fortuna — $50,000 each
Records & Milestones
• Chan Sung Jung’s return after 1,274 days (3.5 years) away from competition.
• Three marijuana positives on one card (Blaydes, Price, Trujillo) — two fights overturned to No Contests.
• Volkan Oezdemir’s UFC debut — future LHW title challenger within 10 months.
Legacy & Impact
Jung’s Houston return established him as a top-five UFC FW with title contendership credentials. His subsequent career produced one of MMA’s most memorable moments: the spinning back-elbow KO of Yair Rodriguez with one second remaining in round five at UFC Fight Night 139 in November 2018 — executed from apparent desperation and considered one of the sport’s most spectacular individual finishes. Houston was step one of the career phase that led to that back-elbow.
Oezdemir’s debut-to-title-shot trajectory — Houston to UFC 220 in 10 months — was one of the fastest in UFC LHW history. His title fight loss to Cormier did not diminish the story of the rapid rise. The three marijuana positives from Houston accelerated UFC and athletic commission discussions about cannabis testing standards, USADA threshold policies, and the gap between federal anti-doping and state athletic commission regulatory frameworks.
FAQ
Why did Jung serve in the South Korean military?
South Korean law requires all male citizens aged 18-35 to complete mandatory military service of approximately 21 months. MMA fighters receive no automatic exemption. Jung completed his mandatory service while managing his MMA career transition. His MMA-related injuries and surgeries qualified him for government office duty rather than field service, allowing him to commute from home and train at lower intensity during off-hours. The 3.5-year gap included his service period and preparation time.
What was the marijuana testing situation?
USADA applies a threshold of 150 ng/ml of THC metabolites before issuing a suspension. Below that threshold, marijuana metabolites do not trigger a USADA sanction. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation applied its own 90-day suspension and $1,000 fine to all three fighters — reflecting TDLR’s lower threshold. All three had below-USADA-threshold but above-TDLR-threshold readings. Blaydes’ and Price’s fight results were overturned to No Contests by TDLR; Trujillo’s loss remained because he was the losing fighter.
Who was Volkan Oezdemir before Houston?
Oezdemir was a 26-year-old Swiss fighter of Turkish descent who had competed in Cage Warriors and European promotions. His 12-1 professional record included eight finishes. His UFC debut against OSP — a veteran who had recently fought Jon Jones for the interim LHW title — was a significant step-up. The split decision victory demonstrated his defensive competence and striking quality. His next three UFC wins all came by first-round KO, producing the Daniel Cormier title fight booking at UFC 220.
What was Alexa Grasso’s situation against Herrig?
Grasso had won her UFC debut at FN98 in Mexico City in November 2016 by unanimous decision. Her Houston fight against Herrig was just her second UFC appearance. The unusual passivity noted by commentators — Grasso failing to press forward with her Mexico City striking aggression — was attributed to game plan miscalibration against Herrig’s consistent overhand right. Her subsequent UFC career recovered and produced the UFC SBW Championship win over Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 285 in March 2023.
What was Jessica Andrade’s position in 2017?
Andrade was a 25-year-old Brazilian SBW who had won four of her last five UFC fights entering Houston. Her aggressive pressure style and finishing instinct had produced TKO wins. The Angela Hill FotN was an early career data point before her career peaked with the UFC SBW Championship at UFC 237 in May 2019, when she stopped Rose Namajunas with a slam in round one.
How did Super Bowl weekend scheduling affect the card?
Super Bowl LI’s placement in Houston brought an entertainment-seeking crowd to the city across the full extended weekend. The UFC’s positioning of a Fight Night on the Saturday before the Sunday Super Bowl captured a portion of this audience. The 1.15M average viewership reflected the combined benefit of the Super Bowl weekend audience surge and the Korean Zombie’s genuine commercial pull. Toyota Center’s 8,119 attendance was modest for the venue but reasonable given the competition from Super Bowl LI events across the city.