Doo Ho Choi Record: 17-4-1

Knockout run to stardom

Choi's early UFC tenure was electric. In November 2015 he blitzed Sam Sicilia with a first-round knockout, then delivered the most spectacular finish of his career in July 2016, flattening durable veteran Thiago Tavares in the first round at The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale. The three straight first-round stoppages to open his UFC career made the young Korean one of the division's most exciting prospects and earned him a step up against elite competition.

The fight that made him a legend

At UFC 206 in December 2016, Choi met veteran contender Cub Swanson in a back-and-forth war that became an instant classic. Choi dropped the decision over three rounds—the first loss of his UFC career—but the bout was named the 2016 Fight of the Year and was later enshrined in the UFC Hall of Fame's Fight Wing as part of the 2022 class, immortalizing both men. The brutal toll of his rise then caught up with him: he was stopped by Jeremy Stephens in January 2018 and by Charles Jourdain in December 2019, the latter coming as injuries and a long layoff loomed.

The long-awaited return

Choi spent years away from competition before resurfacing in February 2023, fighting Kyle Nelson to a majority draw. He found his finishing form again in 2024, stopping Bill Algeo and then Nate Landwehr at UFC 310 to put together back-to-back wins for the first time in years. He carried that momentum into May 2026, stopping Daniel Santos by second-round TKO to push his comeback to three straight wins.

Fighting style

Choi is one of the most concussive strikers in featherweight history, a taekwondo-rooted boxer-puncher with crisp combinations, sharp counters and rare one-shot power. The numbers are emphatic: 14 of his 17 wins have come by knockout, anchoring an 88% finish rate that ranks among the highest in the division. His willingness to stand and trade makes him box-office and dangerous in every exchange. The flip side is defensive risk—his aggression has left him in firefights, and both of his knockout losses came in wars where he absorbed heavy damage—but few fighters generate finishes as reliably as Choi does.

Career highlights

• UFC Hall of Fame fight — his 2016 war with Cub Swanson was named Fight of the Year and inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame's Fight Wing.
• Three straight first-round UFC knockouts — opened his promotional run by finishing Juan Manuel Puig, Sam Sicilia and Thiago Tavares inside a round each.
• 88% career finish rate — 14 knockouts across 17 wins, the mark of one of featherweight's most feared finishers.