!['Kim Dong-hyun's Student' Ko Seok-hyun: "My condition is too good, seeing the opponent gives me even more confidence"... Changing his nickname and preparing a wedding gift [UFC] | STARNEWS](https://www.mogazmasr.com/uploads/2026/07/19/jean-paul-lebosnoyani-53820a67_800w.webp)
Ko Seok-hyun made weight at 76.7kg on the 19th Korean time, clearing the welterweight limit for his bout with Jean-Paul Mendy and setting up the fight for the next day at UFC Fight Night: Du Plessis vs Usman in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA. After the weigh-in, he said he will step into this one under a new nickname: Technical.
The change is not just a rebrand. Ko, 32, said his old name, Korean Tyson, borrowed too much from someone else and did not feel like his own. Technical is his way of putting the focus on craft, not imitation, as he tries to build the version of himself he wants fans to see.
The weigh-in matters because it confirmed the bout can move ahead under standard MMA unified rules. Jean-Paul Mendy came in at 77.6kg, and the two bowed and shook hands during the face-off. Under the rules, a margin of error of 0.45kg is allowed for standard weigh-ins, but Ko was well inside the mark anyway.
Ko said his condition was excellent after losing more weight than expected and then concentrating on recovery. He said he had not had a finish in the UFC yet and wanted one this time. That leaves his public reset tied to a very specific demand: not just looking sharp, but ending the fight before the scorecards.
He also pointed to life outside the cage. Ko said his fiancée told him the match comes first, even as he is preparing for a wedding next month. That detail fits the way he described his camp: focused on self-development, confidence and his own progress rather than spending too much time on the man across from him.
The timing gives the story its weight. This all happened one day before UFC Fight Night in Oklahoma City, and the card is already carrying its own stakes at the top end. Dricus Du Plessis and Kamaru Usman weighed in yesterday for the main event, with Usman calling himself one of the greatest fighters in history and Du Plessis pushing back by saying nothing in Usman's career so far will help him against him.
For Ko, the next step is simpler and harder at the same time. He has made the weight, changed the name and talked plainly about wanting a finish. Now he has to turn that reset into something the judges never need to touch.
