This Week’s MMA Birthdays: Dong Hyun Kim Turns 32

---

The first Korean mixed martial artist ever to win a bout inside the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Dong Hyun Kim will celebrate his 32nd birthday on Nov. 17.

Kim has compiled a 9-2 mark since arriving in the UFC five years ago, emerging as one of the promotion’s premier welterweights. A fourth-degree black belt in judo, he last appeared at UFC Fight Night 29 in October, when he knocked out former Jungle Fight champion Erick Silva in the second round of their encounter at the Jose Correa Gymnasium in Sao Paulo, Brazil. The performance earned him a $50,000 bonus for “Knockout of the Night.”

The “Stun Gun” debuted in the Octagon at UFC 84 in May 2008, as he stopped Jason Tan on third-round elbows and forever stamped his name in the history books. He has since gone on to post victories over “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 5 winner Nate Diaz, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 7 winner Amir Sadollah, Afghan knockout artist Siyar Bahadurzada and Matt Brown, the resurgent Ohioan who has climbed all the way to No. 10 in the current world rankings. Known for a rugged clinch and a suffocating top game, Kim owns a 10-0-1 record in fights that reach the judges.

Those in MMA celebrating a birthday the week covering Nov. 17-Nov. 23:

NOV. 17

Emi Fujino (33)
Daniel Stittgen (33)
Dong Hyun Kim (32)

NOV. 18

Masanori Kanehara (31)
John Teixeira da Conceicao (27)

NOV. 19

Gerald Harris (34)
Taro Kusano (30)

NOV. 20

Rickson Gracie (55)
Gan McGee (37)
Chris Camozzi (27)
Kevin Pearson (27)

NOV. 21

Mikhail Ilyukhin (47)
Rodney Wallace (32)
Karl Amoussou (28)
Thiago Santos (27)
Jorge Lopez (25)

NOV. 22

Edilberto de Oliveira (31)
Daniel Weichel (29)

Reader comments are active below.