I Am Boxer (2025) s01e05 Episode Script

[upbeat music playing]
[bell dings]
[announcer] The winner of I Am Boxer will
receive a grand prize of 300 million won
and a top-of-the-line flagship SUV.
Round 3 of I Am Boxer.
The Three Rings.
[contestant 1] They're dropping
a chicken coop on us.
[announcer] The cage ring.
-The ring's basically a straight line.
-Two-on-two?
[announcer] The tag ring.
-Is that water?
-It's gonna rain too?
[announcer] The aqua ring.
Anyone who loses the fight
is immediately
eliminated.
I Am Boxer,
the Three Rings.
Up next for this bout…
the cage ring.
The fight in the cage ring
will be one-on-one
and have two 3-minute rounds.
[contestant 1] Man, that chicken coop…
It's way too narrow.
-Looks like an underground arena.
-Yeah.
Honestly, this setup
is pretty brutal for out-boxers.
Yeah, it's way too small.
It's three meters all around.
[announcer] The cage ring.
Fighters, step in.
Red corner, Kim Taesun.
[contestant 1 grunts]
You got this, man.
[Jongkook] Anyone who wants to challenge
Kim Taesun, please step forward.
[Dex] Seriously, who would want to?
[Jongkook] And Kim Taesun's
a champion, you know.
No way. Nobody's taking that.
[contestants gasping]
[contestant 1] So badass.
[contestant 2] Awesome, coach!
-[Lee] Nice.
-[Jongkook] He's the man.
A man's man.
[contestant 4 exclaims]
I never made it all the way
to a championship as a pro,
so I thought I'd step up
to take on a real champion for once.
[Jongkook] In the cage ring,
it's Kim Taesun versus Lee Sanggeun.
KIM TAESUN VS LEE SANGGEUN
[contestant 1] So it's those two, huh?
It looks even smaller with them in there.
There's no way he'd lose this.
First off, I'm just glad to go up
against such an admirable opponent.
I'll show you what a champion can do.
-Love that confidence.
-[Jongkook] Absolutely.
[Dex] He is a champion, after all.
[contestant 1] Taesun's got this.
He's not losing this one.
[sighs] It's so tiny, though.
[contestant 2] Sure, we can manage.
But that's way too tight for you guys.
It's crazy tight in there.
That thing's cramped.
They just have to bang it out in there.
-A straight-up fistfight.
-[Lee] Just bang it out.
Once I actually stepped in,
there was just enough room for me to move.
So I thought,
"How do I game-plan in here?"
Until now, I have only ever fought
in square rings over five meters in size.
So the idea of fighting
in a cage like that
felt pretty exciting.
[referee] Fighters, in position.
[announcer] Kim Taesun
versus Lee Sanggeun.
-Let us begin the fight.
-Glove touch.
Stand back.
Two steps are just about it.
There's no room to even back up.
[contestant 2] This is nuts. [sighs]
-Box!
-[bell dings]
-Box!
-[contestants] Let's go!
All right!
KIM TAESUN X LEE SANGGEUN
[Jongkook] He's going hard at him.
Right from the start?
He's going for a first-round finish.
He's rushing.
[contestants gasping]
-There.
-Now we're talking.
[Dex] There's that jab.
[contestant 4 gasps] Wow,
that jab is so good.
[contestant 5] Love that jab.
-[contestant 6] Nice.
-He keeps getting tagged by the jab.
[Taesun] My plan was to feel him out
in the first round.
[contestant] Wow, his lead hand is sharp.
[Sanggeun] That jab's really landing.
[Dex] His jabs are knocking
Kim Taesun's whole body back.
Man, I want that jab.
[Taesun] He's in a higher weight class,
so I found myself getting pushed back.
But my strength isn't just
my punching power.
I've got a good chin too.
I wanted to read his style
and drain his gas tank a bit,
so I figured I'd eat a few shots.
The damage is probably adding up.
His lead hand is great.
[contestant 2] Don't go in.
Strike from there.
Stay there and strike.
Since it's so tight.
-No room to dodge.
-Find your rhythm, Taesun.
[Taesun] But once I started taking
the hits, they just kept landing.
I thought, "This isn't going right."
[contestant 1] Man,
the lead hand really matters, huh?
Wow, that jab is clean.
[contestant 2] He needs
to catch him when he jabs.
[contestants gasping]
Okay, strike from there.
[contestant 2] Get out of there.
Once you're trapped, that's it.
He needs to press forward.
All right!
Strike up close!
-That's it.
-Ten seconds!
-Ten seconds!
-Ten seconds!
[contestant 2] The way he slips those
so easily shows how experienced he is.
[contestant] All right!
-[bell dings]
-[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant] Dang, he's good.
-Nicely done.
-That was great.
[contestant] Nice game.
That was something else.
But in the second round,
I'm curious to see how…
[Jongkook] We'll have to see.
[Dex] I wonder how they'll manage
their gas tanks.
[Jongkook] Lee Sanggeun's jab is
worth noting.
It's really sharp.
[Sanggeun] My plan was working.
Taesun was struggling to find his way in.
I stuck to jabs,
countering when punches came in,
and firing combos
whenever I saw an opening.
That was my plan all along.
My plan was to turn it up
in the second round anyway.
I kept it tight to tire him out,
and then switch the fight to my rhythm.
Coach is great at flicking those shots in.
He just pops them in.
But Taesun's swinging too wide.
He seems a little thrown off.
[Dongjin] His lead hand isn't landing.
Let's see if Kim Taesun commits here.
Let's go, guys!
-Let's go!
-Let's go!
[Lee] Oh, boy.
-[contestant 1] It's the last round.
-[bell dings]
[Lee] All right, the last round.
-Let's go!
-Let's go!
KIM TAESUN X LEE SANGGEUN
-[gasps]
-Whoa, nice shot.
-[all exclaim]
-Nice shot to the head!
His jab's insane.
[contestants exclaiming]
Coach is doing awesome.
[Taesun] Once I lost my timing,
I just kept losing it.
That's when I knew I had to reset.
So I decided to aim for the body
as best as I could.
Yeah, give one and take one!
Sounds weighty.
[contestant 1] Nice shot!
Good. Now aim for the body!
[Lee] Lee Sanggeun sticks it right in…
-[contestants gasping]
-[gasps]
His biggest flaw is
that he doesn't have a proper jab.
His defense is solid.
[contestant 3] Yes, use your range!
-Nice shot!
-He's got him trapped.
-He's trapped.
-He needs to stay out of the corner.
-This is crazy.
-Get out of there!
Don't give him that. Push forward.
[contestant 2] You gotta move!
[contestant 3] Get out of there!
[Taesun] I'm not an infighter
who thrives in close-range combat.
I'm a mid-range power puncher.
That tiny cage isn't really for my style.
So yeah, I struggled a little.
You have to get out of it.
Keep moving, Taesun!
[contestant 2] Nice one!
[Dex] For some reason,
Kim Taesun just can't get anything going.
It's the jabs, they're adding damage.
-Damage?
-It's bound to.
[Dex] Must be really adding up then.
Strike from there! Jab!
[contestant 1] That's it!
That landed clean.
[contestants gasping]
[exclaiming]
This is insane. He took a lot of hits.
[gasps]
[contestant 1] Yes! Get him!
[contestants exclaim]
-Wow!
-[contestant 2] He's insane.
-Ten seconds! Let's go!
-Last ten seconds!
[contestant 5] Last one! Let's go!
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 7] Coach is incredible.
KIM TAESUN X LEE SANGGEUN
-Stop!
-[announcer] The fight is over.
Now that's how you box. [chuckles]
[exclaims]
Great fight.
[Jongkook] Seriously great.
[Lee] Both of you put
on a great fight, really.
-You both did so well.
-[Jongkook] Honestly, this was… Wow.
[contestant] That was no joke.
The winner of this match is…
OFFICIATED AND JUDGED
BY 20 PROFESSIONAL JUDGES
FROM THE KOREAN BOXING
ASSOCIATION, KBF, AND KBM
Lee Sanggeun from the blue corner.
-[contestants gasping]
-[applause]
BLUE CORNER
LEE SANGGEUN SURVIVES
-Well played.
-Thank you.
[contestant] Respect.
That's what being a boxer is all about.
You take hits, but you keep going.
That's boxing right there.
[Sanggeun] It was
an honor to fight a real champion.
And winning just made me happier.
[chuckles]
[Taesun] I made it through
two consolation matches to get here,
but I fought with no regrets.
I had fun.
[announcer] This is
I Am Boxer's cage ring.
[Lee] A regular office worker versus
a Muay Thai national team member.
I'll show you that there can be an upset.
[contestants] All right!
I'll dominate this fight and win.
Great.
-Box!
-[bell dings]
That punch sounds insane…
[gasps]
[contestant] He hits with good impact.
-[Dex] Man, he's so…
-Powerful, isn't he?
-He hits hard.
-Yeah.
That's a Muay Thai punch right there.
[Dex] You can really feel the force
behind Kim Hyunjun's punches.
His boxing's solid for a Muay Thai guy.
[Lee] The winner
of this match is Kim Hyunjun.
[Dex] Next up,
a fight between the college boxers.
LIM YUNCHAN VS NAM MINWOO
-Let's go!
-Let's go!
-Box!
-[bell dings]
[exclaims]
-So that's his style of boxing.
-[grunts]
[Dex] Nice.
But it's risky.
You need to slip then throw,
but if you only slip,
you're eventually going to eat one.
That straight is so clean.
-[contestants grunting]
-[contestants exclaim]
He got caught clean!
-[Jongkook] Lim Yunchan's pretty good too.
-[Lee] He's good.
Lim Yunchan's style is pure fundamentals.
The winner of this match is
Lim Yunchan.
RED CORNER LIM YUNCHAN SURVIVES
They've matched these two?
MOON JIHYEOK, AMATEUR BOXER
VS KWON OHGON,
FORMER TWO-DIVISION CHAMP
[Jihyeok] You can't beat youth.
[Ohgon] I'll make sure
to knock him out dead.
[bell dings]
Box!
[contestants exclaim]
He's super fast.
[Lee] He's got speed.
-[Dex] So that's "lightning fast."
-[Lee] Yeah.
-[exclaim]
-All right!
He's got great instincts.
[Lee] He's absolutely savage.
The winner of this match
is Kwon Ohgon from the blue corner.
CAGE RING SURVIVORS - HYUNJUN,
YUNCHAN, OHGON, SANGGEUN
EPISODE 5
[contestant] This game is fun to watch.
[announcer] The tag ring.
Fighters, step in.
Blue corner,
Lee Gijun and Kim Minwoo.
[contestant 1 exclaims]
-[contestant 2] Go get 'em!
-[contestants] Let's do this!
[contestant 3] Gijun's real good, though.
-He's different.
-He's freaking good.
[Lee] Lee Gijun is a member
of Woosuk University's boxing club.
Whoa, look at that hot body!
[contestant 6] His muscles are on fire.
[contestants exclaim]
[Lee] Oh, he's fast.
-He's got great rhythm.
-[contestant] He's great.
[contestant 1] Great movement.
He's got that Ghanaian rhythm.
[Dex] The way he dips and strikes…
[Jongkook] He's so explosive.
[contestant 2] It felt like I was watching
an international boxing match.
[Gijun] I'll fight hard to the end
with no regrets.
-His body's unreal.
-Gijun's real good.
[Lee] Kim Minwoo is an MMA guy,
but we picked him
because he boxed so well.
-In the first round.
-Yes.
Both of them are great. I love this.
[announcer] Red corner,
Kim Hunsu and Lee Juyeong.
Let's go, Juyeong!
-[contestant 1] You got this, Juyeong!
-[contestant 2] Go get 'em!
What does this other team do?
The guy on the right plays volleyball.
Not sure about the guy on the left.
[contestant] They're both hella built.
Look at those shoulders.
Lee Juyeong is really young, huh?
I'm hyped for this one.
This is gonna be fun.
-This match has a real story behind it.
-[Dex] That's right.
[Juyeong] Seeing Kim Minwoo
got my blood boiling.
[Lee] The survivor of this match is
-Lee Juyeong.
-[cheers]
Thank you, sir!
Wait, hold on.
Kim Minwoo from the red corner
also survives.
[Juyeong] Since we
both passed in that round,
now it's either I get cut or he does.
[Minwoo] All right,
let's fight for real this time.
[Jongkook] Weight-wise,
Kim Hunsu's team has the advantage.
Physically, they have the edge
but they lack experience.
Let's see how this plays out.
[announcer] First fighters,
step in.
The heavier guys are up first.
RED CORNER R1 KIM HUNSU
BLUE CORNER R1 LEE GIJUN
[Jongkook] Okay, so it's these two first.
The size difference is huge.
Let's go, Kim Hunsu!
[announcer] Let us begin the fight.
-Box!
-[bell dings]
[contestants] Let's go!
You got this, Lee Gijun!
Let's go, Kim Hunsu!
[contestant 3] Easy on the pressure.
[contestant 4] Man, he's really tall.
[contestant 5] That reach, though.
This is basically fencing.
[Hunsu] Since I've got more reach,
I figured I should use it to my advantage.
Look at Kim Hunsu go!
Kim Hunsu's punches
have real weight behind them.
They're intimidating.
[contestant] Gijun is looking
a bit stiff right now.
It's the height difference.
[Gijun] I wasn't expecting the volleyball
guy to be that good of a boxer.
He kept throwing punches.
I just couldn't settle in.
He's too big to get in on easily.
[contestant 2] No need
to close the distance!
[contestant 3] Go first!
Make the first move!
-[contestant 4] Keep him at range!
-[contestant 5] Just keep your guard up.
[Gijun] I'm like,
"Screw it. I'm going in."
[contestants exclaiming]
Keep going!
Boy, he got caught.
[Jongkook] Yes, that's how you go in.
[contestant 1] That's it.
Just swing!
-Nice!
-That's it!
[Juyeong] Keep your chin down, man!
[Dex] Kim Hunsu is coming at him hard.
But Lee Gijun's not giving ground.
[Minwoo] Gijun, pressure him!
Good, keep it up!
[contestant 1] All right!
[Juyeong] Chin down! Chin down!
[Dex] He's pressuring him hard!
-[Juyeong] Your chin!
-[Dex] One minute!
Tag out if you need to!
-Tag out, man!
-Switch players.
All right, you're up.
[referee] Stop!
-They're switching.
-All right.
RED CORNER SWITCH: LEE JUYEONG
You can continue if you want.
You good, Gijun? Okay.
-Looks like Gijun chose not to tag out.
-[Jongkook] He's holding up well.
[contestant] Wait, why didn't they switch?
Nah, I think he's still good.
[Gijun] I wanted to save Minwoo's stamina,
and I still had some energy left,
-so I decided not to tag out.
-[bell dings]
-Let's go, Gijun!
-Come this way, Gijun!
No, don't back up!
[contestant 2] Connect your jab!
[contestant 1] Don't back up!
[contestant 3] That's it!
[Gijun] My goal was to keep Juyeong moving
and burn his stamina.
Gijun, back up and breathe!
[contestant 2] Press him!
-Hound him!
-[contestant 3] Nice!
[contestants exclaiming]
Nice, Juyeong!
Nice, Juyeong!
Those shots are freaking loaded.
He's not tiring out.
[contestant 2] Gijun, get in there!
Ten seconds!
[contestant] Gijun, ease your way in.
All right.
Keep breathing, man.
Stay calm, stay calm.
Nice, nice, nice.
LEE JUYEONG X LEE GIJUN
-Stop!
-[Jongkook] Okay, time's up.
He did all four minutes alone.
Could be their strategy.
Both guys from red are out of gas.
This way,
Kim Minwoo got to save some energy.
Red will probably send in Lee Juyeong.
[contestant] Blue's definitely making
the switch now, right?
[announcer] Fighters, step in.
[Lee] Red's sending out Lee Juyeong.
[Jongkook] Continuing from the last round.
Whoa.
[exclaims]
He's going back in again?
-They haven't switched either.
-It's Lee Gijun again?
BLUE CORNER R2 LEE GIJUN
This is definitely a strategy call.
Looks like he's trying to run
until he's empty.
[Gijun] First off,
I felt like I still had enough stamina,
so I stepped back in.
[Minwoo] The plan was to keep
one fighter fresh as long as we could.
We figured managing our stamina smartly
could help us take the win,
so we had Gijun start things off.
LEE JUYEONG X LEE GIJUN
-[bell dings]
-They need to keep a cool head now.
-Need to fight smart from here.
-[contestant] All right.
Don't freeze up.
[contestants exclaiming]
That's a clean hit.
He tossed an uppercut like that?
-[Minwoo] Strike!
-[Hunsu] Notch it down a bit.
[contestants] This is it! Yes!
[exclaims]
[contestant 1] Counter… No!
[contestant 2] How is he so good?
[contestant 3] His stamina is crazy.
-Fix your stance!
-All right!
[contestant 7] Did you see that footwork?
He's moving really well.
Looks like Lee Gijun still has gas.
Hang tough, man!
[Juyeong] I was like, "Wow, he's strong."
"He's stronger than I expected."
[contestant] Remember, pace yourself.
-[Dex] Wait, I think he's bleeding a bit.
-[Jongkook] Yeah, he is.
[contestant 3] He's getting worked up.
Stay calm, stay calm.
BLUE CORNER SWITCH: KIM MINWOO
-[exclaiming]
-Tag out, tag out.
He's finally tagging out.
[contestant 3] Smart strategy.
[Hunsu] Relax, relax.
We're doing good.
[Juyeong] When Minwoo came in,
I thought, "Let's settle this for good."
All right, let's go.
[Juyeong] I think I got a bit fired up.
[Minwoo] "Come on,
let's fight for real now."
[referee] All right, let's go.
-Box!
-[contestant 1] Let's go!
LEE JUYEONG X KIM MINWOO
[contestant 2] See that opening, yeah?
[contestants exclaiming]
[Dex] Lee Juyeong's losing his cool a bit.
You know how it is,
people kind of snap when they smell blood.
[contestant] Oh, no. He's losing his cool.
Relax, man!
You have to stay calm!
[contestant 1] He's pissed.
[contestant 2] I think
they should switch him out.
-[contestant 1] He's getting greedy.
-Hey, tag out!
Tag out, Juyeong!
Tag out! Tag out!
-Juyeong, you need to tag out!
-Switch, switch!
[contestant 2] He's not letting
that happen.
He's not letting that happen.
[contestant 3] He won't let him tag out.
You could say this is a strategy move.
[contestant 4] Lee Juyeong can't switch
out now.
This has turned into
a pride thing for him.
-Get back in for the last round.
-You gotta win this.
Switch, switch!
[contestant 7] Tag out!
Use that rule to your advantage!
[Juyeong] I think I got too worked up.
The fight just wasn't going my way.
[contestant] Yes, that's it!
He's getting dragged.
[contestant 2] Juyeong, get out of there!
You have to tag out now!
[Jongkook] He needs to extend further.
-Further, extend further.
-[contestant 3] Upper to the body!
He's staying on him.
[contestants exclaim]
[exclaims]
Stay calm!
-All right! That's it!
-[contestant 1] Come, come, come!
[contestant 2] All right!
-[Dex] He blocked the tag!
-[Jongkook] No, he tagged out.
[Lee] All right!
-He blocked the tag!
-No, he tagged out.
[contestant 1] Let's go!
[contestant 2] Just endure this round.
[contestant 3] This should be fun.
The heavyweights.
[Jongkook] They have to go for it now.
They can't stall here.
-Not long now, man!
-[exclaiming]
[contestant 5] Yes, that's it!
-Nice move!
-Go in!
No, you have to keep going!
[Sungmin] Keep going!
[contestants] All right!
He's getting clipped
by those random swings.
All right, the head!
[contestant 4] Load it up!
-Hunsu, don't stop!
-Push forward!
[Jongkook] The height difference works.
[contestant 6] Get in there!
Kim Hunsu has the heart of a warrior,
although he may lack technique.
[contestant 1] Power through!
[contestants exclaiming]
[exclaims]
[Dex] Kim Hunsu's got
real animal instinct.
[contestant 2] As expected
from a heavyweight.
-Those wild shots are somehow landing.
-[bell dings]
-[referee] Stop!
-[contestant 1] Okay, round over.
[contestant 3] This tag match is fun.
[contestant 4] It really is. [chuckles]
This one's
seriously entertaining. [chuckles]
Wow. [chuckles]
-This is gonna be a tough call.
-[Dex] Right?
[Juyeong] Looks
like Kim Minwoo is spent now.
Gijun will probably step back in.
I got too worked up earlier.
I couldn't stick to my style.
Yeah. You go first.
I'll take the first half of this round.
Cool your head for now.
-Go slow and stay composed.
-Okay.
[announcer] Fighters, step in.
[Lee] Who's stepping in? Oh, I see.
[contestant] Let's go!
[Dex] Blue corner is letting
Gijun rest more.
RED CORNER R3 LEE JUYEONG
Man, this is intense.
-These two again?
-Toe-to-toe?
[chuckles]
He's already getting heated.
[contestant 2] Remember,
keep your head cool.
[Minwoo] Lee Juyeong was staring
holes through me.
Guess he wanted to get right into it.
[contestant] Stay calm!
-[Juyeong] Bring it.
-[bell dings]
[Juyeong] I won't back off an inch.
-Let's go!
-Let's go, Juyeong!
[Gijun] Remember, it's the last round.
-[bell dings]
-Last round!
-Box!
-[contestants] Last round!
[Jongkook] Yes, drive it in there.
-[contestant] All right!
-[Jongkook] That's it!
Stay calm! It's okay! Just stay calm!
[Jongkook] That's it! Smother him!
-All right!
-Juyeong, doing good!
-That's it!
-Stay calm!
[contestant 5] Don't get too heated.
[contestant 6] Just do
what you're thinking.
[contestant 7] Nice shot.
-[contestant 8] Relax, keep it cool!
-[contestants] Oh, whoa!
He's getting too worked up.
[contestant 9] You need insane stamina
to keep that up.
[Jongkook] Nice body shot.
Nice left punch.
[Hunsu] Stay calm!
-Nice! Yes, this is it!
-[contestants exclaiming]
Lee Juyeong's specialty is the left hook.
[Hunsu] Stay calm!
Careful, careful.
Tell me if you're tired.
[Dex] He's settling down now.
[contestant 1] Wow, he's taunting him.
[Dex laughs, exclaims]
Juyeong has a bit of crazy in him,
doesn't he? [chuckles]
He sure does.
"Oh, you hit me? Come here, you."
He's feeding off it to go even harder.
Take your shot, man!
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 1] He's real fiery.
[Dex] Unless someone gets knocked out
here, this is going to be tough to judge.
[contestant 2] This is scary.
[contestant 3] Go in further!
[Minwoo] I was debating
whether to match his intensity
or stick to a smart
hit-and-switch strategy.
Come, let's switch.
Come.
-[Lee] They're switching.
-[contestant 1] Smart move.
BLUE CORNER LAST FIGHTER:
LEE GIJUN
They're switching too.
RED CORNER LAST FIGHTER:
KIM HUNSU
[contestant 3 gasps] This is gonna be
the deciding moment.
All right, let's go!
Okay, box!
[contestant 1] Just do
what you've been doing.
-Let's go!
-Let's go!
[Lee] Gijun's coming in fresh now.
[Jongkook] He's back in with fresh legs.
[Dex] But Kim Hunsu is no joke either.
He's strong, and he's got a solid chin.
Gijun, try fighting closer now!
[contestant 2] You've got
to keep it calm! Relax!
[contestant 3] Slow down!
[contestant 4] Watch his lower hand.
[Jongkook] Guard up, guard up.
Kim Hunsu's guard is dropping way too low.
Watch his lower hand.
[Jongkook] He's gotta step
in and throw now.
But with this size gap…
Yeah, no way that reaches.
Throw one at a time.
[contestant 2] Okay, hit and move!
[contestants exclaiming]
He caught him!
That was an overhand!
-Fake low, then throw the overhand up top.
-[cheers]
[Minuk] His overhand keeps landing.
Because the guard is down.
Yeah, it's completely down.
Just do what you did earlier.
Yes, just like that!
[contestant 1] Okay! Okay!
[exclaiming]
That shot did real damage!
He felt that one!
Hey, stay calm, stay calm!
-Deep breaths!
-[contestant 2] He's loosened up now.
You can't beat him now.
-[contestant 3] There you go!
-[contestant 4] How is he so good?
[grunting]
[contestant 3] All right!
All right, do everything you want!
Anything you want, Gijun!
[grunting continues]
Wait, that's too--
[contestant 4] There you go!
[contestant 5]
Give it everything you've got!
-Okay, last one!
-Ten seconds!
[contestant 6] One last time! Ten seconds!
Ten seconds!
Keep throwing!
-[contestant 1] Come on!
-[grunting, groaning]
[contestant 2] Okay, last one!
-[contestant 3] Let's go!
-Go for it!
-Stop!
-[contestant 4] All right!
[contestant cheering]
-Wow.
-Man, that was good.
[Lee] Well fought.
[chattering]
Lee Gijun's real good.
I mean, what a fight! [chuckles]
Lee Gijun held his ground so well.
-That was amazing.
-Yeah, they were great.
[contestant 1] You two did great!
You guys were awesome!
[Lee] The winners of this match are…
[contestant 7] If he stayed a bit calmer,
he might've done even better.
[contestant 8] Blue takes this.
[Hunsu]
It's bittersweet, but I feel relieved too.
I think I showed everything I had.
[Minwoo] I thought we had this one.
[Lee] Lee Gijun and Kim Minwoo
from the blue corner.
-[contestant 1] Yeah!
-[contestant 2] That was sick!
-[contestant 3] Good game.
-[contestant 2] Well fought!
But honestly, Lee Juyeong,
the performance you put on in that ring…
I'm older than you, but man…
What you showed in there was impressive.
Thank you.
The truth is,
I haven't trained properly lately.
It's been maybe a month and a half.
I kind of…
Well, I hit a slump.
And I just started living alone in Seoul.
So my rent
is a bit overdue too. [chuckles]
[chuckles]
I need to make money,
but work's hard to find.
I've been going through
a major slump in boxing.
I probably sent over 50 part-time
job applications in a week.
No one wanted to hire me,
because I'm a middle school grad.
People keep telling me,
"It'd be a waste if you quit boxing."
But I still need to eat to survive.
So, I've really been debating
whether to continue or not…
[sighs]
But I want to keep going.
[breathing heavily]
[contestants, judges] Aw.
That's the spirit!
Man, I'm tearing up.
You're awesome.
[contestants chattering]
[narrator] When your name is called,
please step into the ring.
Park Youngho and Shin Donghyun.
[cheering]
-[contestant 2] Go get 'em!
-[contestant 3] Let's go, man!
[cheering continues]
PARK YOUNGHO, SHIN DONGHYUN
[Dex] This team's a strong pair.
[Jongkook] Shin Donghyun is no joke.
He's signed with OE Championship.
-Right, he's the first Korean to do it.
-[Jongkook] Mmm.
I'm sure he got signed for a reason.
-And Park Youngho's body is insane.
-[Jongkook] That's right.
[Lee]
He won the fitness model championship.
[contestant 1] Damn,
he's gonna be tough to break.
[contestants laugh]
[narrator] Red corner,
Ko Yohan and Kim Dongeon.
-All right!
-Let's go!
You got this!
[contestant 2]
Show them how outboxing is done!
[Jihyeok] Know anything about that guy?
[Seongjun] Oh, you mean Ko Yohan?
Not a clue.
Is he a pro athlete?
[Lee] Kim Dongeon. An elite boxer.
A high school student and a bus driver.
KIM DONGEON, KO YOHAN
DURING THE TAG RING TEAM FORMATION
May I ask what sport you do?
I'm just a bus driver.
-Really?
-Yes.
He said he was a bus driver.
So I was like, "This could be real bad."
There's a huge weight difference here.
TOTAL WEIGH
RED: 147 KG, BLUE: 158 KG
This is not going to be easy.
[Shin Donghyun] I was thinking,
"We're basically getting a free win here."
"This round's gonna be an easy one."
Losing to these guys
would make no sense at all.
Winning is a no-brainer.
I expect to finish them by KO.
Shin Donghyun from the blue corner,
care to share your thoughts
before the fight?
I'll finish them off for sure.
I hope there's an ambulance ready.
-[all exclaiming]
-[contestants chuckling]
-[contestant 1] He's taunting.
-Let's get it!
-Skrr, skrr.
-[contestant laughs]
I realized they were looking down on us.
I guess you're underestimating me
because I'm a high schooler.
Today, I'll show you instead.
-…I'll show you instead.
-[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 2] Talk about confidence!
[Dex] This is intense.
[narrator] Let us begin the fight.
First fighters,
step in.
BLUE CORNER R1 PARK YOUNGHO
[contestants exclaiming]
RED CORNER R1 KO YOHAN
[contestant 1] The bus driver.
All right.
[Dex] They saved the pros to go next.
-One will hold the pace…
-[Dex] Yes.
…then the other will come in
with the technique.
[Lee] It's gonna be a slugfest.
-Yeah, they're definitely going there.
-[Lee] Absolutely.
-[contestant 1] Let's go!
-[contestant 2] Let's go!
-Come on!
-[contestant 3] You got this!
[in English] Box!
[in Korean] All right, box!
KO YOHAN X PARK YOUNGHO
[Youngho] Not sure we'll see boxing,
but a brawl is guaranteed.
[Yohan] I won't back down no matter what.
Be confident! Throw a combo!
Straighten up and one-two!
Strike with confidence!
-Do what you want!
-Pull him in!
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 3] Let's go!
-[contestant 4] He's like a bull.
-[contestant 5] What the…
[contestants shouting, exclaiming]
[exclaiming continues]
[exclaiming]
With that size difference,
the power gap is massive.
[contestant 6] Nice body shot.
[Dongeon] Move forward!
Don't back up! Move forward!
[contestant 1] He's like a wild animal.
-[grunting, groaning]
-[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 2]
Don't just take those shots! Counter him!
-Just counter him!
-[contestant exclaiming]
I mean, it's not
your typical boxing match.
-It's basically a street fight.
-Looks like he's gonna gas out.
All right, keep brawling!
[contestant 3] Okay, switch it up!
[contestant 4] Okay, give him some!
-[contestant 5] Yes, keep going!
-[contestant 4] That's it!
-That's it!
-Just keep digging!
-[grunting, groaning]
-[contestants shouting, exclaiming]
[Jongkook] This is insane.
[Lee] Keep that up
and you'll kill yourself out there.
-[gasps] Wow.
-[Lee] His stamina is insane.
[exclaiming, shouting continues]
[Lee] So that's the stamina
of a fitness enthusiast. [gasps]
Youngho, tag out, tag out!
Hey, tag out!
KO YOHAN X PARK YOUNGHO
-Switch players!
-[contestant 1] Switch, switch!
[referee] Hurry up and switch!
Can you stay?
Let's switch after 30 seconds.
[Dex] Looks like Ko Yohan is staying in.
[Dongeon]
Since we had no data on the other team,
we had Ko Yohan go first
so I could read them
and figure out how to approach the match.
Okay, box!
[contestant 2] Yohan, use your lead hand!
KO YOHAN X SHIN DONGHYUN
-[gasps]
-That body shot connected nicely.
[contestant 3]
Careful, he might fall over.
[grunting, groaning]
[contestant 4] His jabs are pretty clean.
[contestant 5] Nice shot!
[Shin Donghyun]
I thought, "This is too easy."
Yohan, tag out!
Tag out already!
[Dex] Man, he won't let him!
No, Shin Donghyun!
He's blocking him!
[Dongeon] This is bad.
[contestant 6] Don't let him tag out!
[contestant 7] Yohan, tag out! This is it!
Tag out, tag out!
Come on, tag out!
[contestant 8]
I don't think he can get out of this.
Donghyun, keep going!
-He's blocking me!
-[contestant exclaiming]
[referee, in English] Okay, stop!
Stop! [in Korean] Okay, switch!
That was super close.
[exclaims]
[contestant 1] Okay, well done!
-Let's start right back up.
-[contestant 2] What is this, Tekken?
[in English] Box!
[in Korean] Dongeon, let's go!
[contestant 3] Be confident!
[Dongeon] I was confident.
[chattering]
[contestant 4] That's it!
-All right!
-[contestant 5] All right!
[contestant 3] Show them!
-There you go!
-[contestants exclaim]
He's not intimidated at all.
He's got real fighting spirit.
[contestant 1] Feels like straight-up
Tekken, right down to his footwork.
[grunting]
-All right!
-[cheering]
[contestant 2] He's gonna drop him.
-[contestant 3] All right!
-[contestants cheering]
-[contestant 4] Keep it up!
-[applauding]
[laughing]
What the hell is going on?
-He's countering.
-[laughs]
[exclaims]
[Yohan] An elite boxer sure was different.
He wasn't backing down an inch,
while coming at me
completely aggressively.
-[contestant 1] Come on!
-[contestant 2] Let's go!
[contestants clamoring, laughing]
[contestant 3] Well, that's bold of him.
-[contestant 4] All right!
-[contestants exclaim]
-Slip, slip!
-[Jongkook] Slip, slip, slip!
-[Dex] Slip!
-Oh, he slipped.
-It's heating up.
-It's heating up!
-[contestants] All right!
-[bell rings]
KIM DONGEON X SHIN DONGHYUN
[cheering, laughing]
You're awesome, kid!
-What is this kid even? [laughs]
-[laughs]
This is fun.
High schoolers these days are scary.
Dongeon, you're awesome!
[contestant 1] He's not scared one bit.
[Jongkook]
Wow, this fight is insanely fun.
Both fighters have huge personalities.
[Lee] That's true.
-He's even doing things like this.
-Oh…
This is basically a firefly strategy.
He lures him in with this,
then fires right away.
"Look here!" and bam!
[Lee] That's right.
Draw him this way,
then pop him from the other side.
-It's his specialty.
-[Jongkook] Yeah, it's his thing.
[Daeyoung]
My breathing hasn't recovered yet.
-[Minuk] I don't think it's coming back.
-[Daeyoung laughs]
He's used like 95% of his gas tank.
What's your game plan
for the second round?
Who's fighting first?
Wanna go? Or I can go first.
-Yeah, you go.
-Okay.
I'll recover my breath out here.
I'll go first.
[Dongeon] I told Yohan to hold out
for one to two minutes,
promising him that I'd come in
for the last two minutes
to push the pace and score more points.
So I asked him to hang in there.
[narrator] Fighters, step in.
[contestants exclaim]
-[contestant 1] He's going again?
-[contestant 2] Oh, he's going first?
RED: YOHAN, BLUE: DONGHYUN
-[contestant 3] Let's go!
-[contestant 4] Let's go!
-[contestants cheering]
-[inaudible]
I hope Ko Yohan shows us something here.
-[bell rings]
-All right, box!
KO YOHAN X SHIN DONGHYUN
[contestant 5] Let's go, Yohan!
Keep it slow and steady.
Use the lead hand.
[contestants] All right!
[contestant 6] The lead hand!
-Yes, that's it!
-All right!
-One by one!
-Yes, use it!
-[contestant 6] All right!
-Slow down!
Don't rush! Keep it slow and steady!
[grunting, groaning]
[contestant 7]
Keep those hooks and counters coming!
[contestant 6] There you go!
Hey!
[contestant 8] Just do your thing, man!
[Shin Donghyun]
I seriously needed to drop him.
I was like, "If I can't drop him,
it'll scratch my pride big time."
-[cheering]
-[grunting]
Yes, push forward!
So he can't tag out!
Pressure him! Let's lock him in!
[Dex] He's got him cornered,
so he can't go that way.
He keeps pushing him back.
[grunting, groaning continues]
[contestant 1]
Gosh, he's getting too many hits.
[contestants shouting]
KO YOHAN X SHIN DONGHYUN
[Dongeon]
Can he make it through two minutes?
[contestant 2] No, no, no, he can't.
-He needs to tag out.
-[contestant 3] Tag out! Tag out!
Come out, come out!
Come on!
Come out, come out!
TEAM RED SWITCH
[Lee] Oh, my goodness.
-Here comes Dongeon.
-[Jongkook] Dongeon's in.
RED CORNER SWITCH: KIM DONGEON
[contestant 4] Let's go, Dongeon!
He's busting out dance moves!
[contestant 4] Let's go, Dongeon!
-He's busting out dance moves!
-[cheering]
Dongeon's dancing! Let's get this started!
KIM DONGEON X SHIN DONGHYUN
[contestant 5] Wait, what's that?
He's got insane footwork!
Wait, what's that?
He's got insane footwork!
-What even is that?
-[clamoring]
[contestant 6]
Let's go, Gyeongnam Sports High!
He sure knows how to play.
[contestant 7] Look at that step around.
-[grunting]
-[cheering]
[cheering continues]
-Nice.
-[contestant 8] You're awesome, Dongeon!
You're the man!
-[contestant 9] Hold, now strike.
-[grunting, groaning]
-Did he get groggy just now?
-[contestant exclaiming]
[contestant 3] He's gassed out.
[contestant 7]
Tag out! You need to tag out now!
-You good?
-Yeah.
-[Jaehyuk] What?
-[Seungjun] Huh?
[both laugh]
-You good?
-Yeah.
-You good?
-Yeah, I'm fine.
-Thanks.
-No problem.
-What? Why didn't he put his fist out?
-[laughs]
Why'd he pretend not to see it?
-All right!
-Nice, let's go!
[contestant 1] He still
hasn't caught his breath. [laughs]
He wanted out,
so I couldn't just ignore him.
So I figured I'd just finish strong.
Honestly, I was thinking,
"All boxing-related titles aside,
I can't possibly
lose to a high schooler.
I've got 20 years on this kid.
No way I'm taking shots
from a teen." [chuckles]
[contestants cheering]
KIM DONGEON - PARK YOUNGHO
-[in English] Box!
-[contestants cheering]
[Dex, in Korean] Look at him charge in
with his guard up!
There's just no way around that!
[Jongkook] Wow, look at that.
-That's insane.
-[contestant 1] What's happening?
[contestant 2] Nice move!
[contestant 3]
Just steamroll him, Youngho!
[Jongkook] He looks rattled.
He's panicking.
[Dongeon] Because of the size
and strength difference,
I was trying to figure out how to work
the fight the whole time I was in there.
If I went up too close,
I'd get overpowered,
so I tried to keep a distance
and pick him off clean.
-[clamoring]
-[contestant 1] Stay calm! That's it!
That's right!
[contestant 2] All right!
[Lee] Dongeon's managing
his distance fairly well.
[Youngho] He was quick on his feet.
I kept going though, thinking
one would land eventually. [chuckles]
[contestant 3]
Damn, those shots are lethal.
[Dex] Dongeon, pour it all out!
You have to give it all!
I'm like his mom now.
This is driving me nuts.
[contestant 4] He's like a boulder.
-He's not taking any damage at all.
-[grunting, groaning]
-Okay, ten seconds, Dongeon!
-[contestants cheering]
KIM DONGEON X PARK YOUNGHO
-[Lee] He's panicking right now.
-[grunts]
[Jongkook]
He's taking everything like nothing.
-Stop!
-[bell rings]
[contestant exclaims]
-[contestant 5] Nice going!
-He's got guts, all right.
[Dex] Damn, that power…
Those two have
a 26-kilogram weight difference.
[chuckling] Damn.
Park Youngho just needs to
charge forward like this.
Then everything just bounces off him.
He's double his size and age.
-[Dex] Yeah, you're right.
-Yeah.
[contestant laughs]
I knew Kim Dongeon
wouldn't land on me easily,
but I wasn't going to land
on him easily either.
So, given the weight difference
between the two,
the strategy was to have Youngho
stay on Dongeon and shut him out.
Here's the game plan.
Just hold out as much as you can.
I'll score the points.
Got it.
We can do this. We can do this.
[narrator] Fighters, step in.
Who will enter first?
Just stall him and keep countering.
[contestant 1] Yohan's going first again.
Let's do this.
Go give him a bus ride. [laughs]
"Give him a bus ride."
[Dex] It's Shin Donghyun from blue!
BLUE CORNER R3 SHIN DONGHYUN
[bell rings]
KO YOHAN X SHIN DONGHYUN
-Box!
-[exclaims]
-[contestant 1] Let's go!
-[contestant 2] Last round!
Let's get him on that ambulance!
Remember, one-two hook!
One-two hook!
[contestant 3] He swung the other way!
He did it the other way round.
Shin Donghyun definitely
has that fighter instinct.
[contestants] All right!
[contestant 4] Match him!
-[grunting, groaning]
-[contestants shouting]
[contestant 4] Yes, that's it!
-Nice!
-Drop him!
Knock him down!
[shouting continues]
Let's go, Ko Yohan!
Stay confident!
Yohan, go! Strike first!
Yohan, just strike first!
[contestant 5] Jeez, he can't get in.
His opponent's looking way too relaxed.
[Shin Donghyun sighs]
Chicken much?
[grunting]
-[exclaiming]
-[grunting, groaning]
Let's go, bus driver!
I thought he'd drop right away,
but he held out way better
than I expected.
I'll give him that.
[contestant 1] Wait, what's he up to?
[contestant 2] Is he loading up or what?
Watch out for the back hand.
[Jongkook] He's gonna throw that left.
-[contestant 3] Okay, go!
-[contestant 4] Strike!
[contestant 5] He needs to tag out.
-[contestant 6] Yohan, tag out!
-[contestant 7] Switch, switch!
KO YOHAN X SHIN DONGHYUN
He might get KO'd at this rate.
Show him what you've got!
Ready to get in that ambulance?
[contestant laughs]
[Dongeon] Last one! Keep going!
[contestant 8] No, he has to switch.
[referee, in English] Okay, stop!
RED CORNER SWITCH: KIM DONGEON
[Hyunjun, in Korean]
You're losing right now!
You're losing! Go all out!
[chattering]
[Dongeon]
I might have to finish this with a KO.
[referee] All right, box!
[contestants chattering]
[contestant 1] There it is!
-[contestant 2] He's back in the game!
-Nice!
-[Hyunjun] You're losing! Go all out!
-[contestants exclaiming]
-There you go!
-Go get him!
-[Hyunjun] Go all out!
-[contestants gasping]
-[contestant 3] There you go!
-[contestant 4] Go get him!
[exclaims]
All right!
[contestant whoops]
[Shin Donghyun]
I'd planned for Park Youngho
to face Kim Dongeon from the start.
-[Dex] Whoa, he's here.
-[Jongkook] He's back, all right.
Do what you did earlier.
Brace yourself.
[contestant 1] He's being super strategic.
[Youngho] It doesn't hurt.
Just hit me all you want.
[Dongeon] One of us is going down today,
so let's fight.
[in English] Box!
KIM DONGEON X PARK YOUNGHO
[contestant 2, in Korean]
Go full throttle!
[Jongkook] It's any minute now.
[contestant 3] Okay, it's coming.
He's charging in!
He's charging in!
[contestant 4] Push him back with force!
[Jongkook] Wow, look at him go!
[exclaims]
[grunting]
[Jongkook] Wait,
he's not running. He should, though.
[Lee] Circle out of there.
[Jongkook] That's it.
[contestant 5]
Dongeon, land one clean shot,
-then clinch or fall back.
-[exclaims]
[contestant 6] Both hands on the stomach!
His stomach is open!
[contestants clamoring]
-[contestant 7] All right!
-[contestant 8] That's it!
Yes, the stomach!
That's it! There you go!
-[Dex] All right!
-[Jongkook] That's it!
[Lee] That's how you hit.
He's finally slowing down now.
[Jongkook] That's right.
-That did some damage.
-[clamoring]
It's okay!
Hold this out, and we win!
Hold this out, and we win!
[referee] Okay, careful now.
[Youngho] All I really had was grit.
It was my last shot,
so I went in ready to blow the tank.
KIM DONGEON X PARK YOUNGHO
-[Jongkook] Park Youngho is insane!
-[clamoring continues]
[Jongkook] Damn, his stamina is unreal!
[contestant 1] All right!
-[bell rings]
-[contestants cheering, applauding]
[contestant 2]
Man, this is freaking entertaining.
[applauding continues]
-[contestant 3] Dongeon is something else.
-[contestant 4 exclaims]
[all exclaim]
They fought really well.
Man, that was so good.
-Wow.
-[Dex] Wow.
-What a legendary match! [chuckles]
-[contestant applauding]
-I never got hit. I blocked them all.
-Huh?
-You did, did you?
-[judges laugh]
[Jongkook] He says his face is spotless.
[narrator]
We will now announce the result.
[Jongkook exclaims]
-It is what it is. Yes, yes.
-Right.
The winners of this match are…
Park Youngho and Shin Donghyun
from the blue corner!
BLUE CORNER
PARK YOUNGHO & SHIN DONGHYUN SURVIVE
[Jongkook] Both teams did amazing, really.
All right, Park Youngho.
You're a powerhouse, aren't you?
Mr. Muscles
is more than just muscles. [chuckles]
-His engine is insane.
-[judges laugh]
I mainly lift weights by profession.
I may seem a bit sloppy
compared to the experts here,
but boxing is ultimately a fistfight.
I just used my fists and brawled.
-Hope you enjoyed the fight.
-[judges, contestants cheer, applaud]
[contestant 1]
I think it's kind of cool, though.
Seeing a nonathlete push this hard.
[Dex] Let's move on
to our dark horse and ace of the day.
-You're the best. No doubt.
-[Dex] Kim Dongeon!
It's an honor
just to have made an impression
on such amazing, famous fighters here.
I'm from Masan, South Gyeongsang Province.
It's a five-hour trip.
So I'd like to thank my mom
for driving me back and forth every time.
Thank you all so much.
[Jongkook exclaims]
You did awesome, Dongeon!
I'm a fan!
Well done!
-[applauding]
-[Dex] Ah.
TAG RING SURVIVORS
CHAEHYUN & HYUNJAE
MINWOO & GIJUN
YOUNGHO & DONGHYUN
[Sungwoon] We get to see this?
Feels like the finals already.
-Box!
-They might break down the cage.
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 1]
Every single movement is pure artistry.
-[cheering]
-[grunting, groaning]
-[shouts]
-Wow.
The reigning undisputed unified
light heavyweight champion!
-Seriously?
-[contestant 2] Is it really him?
[exclaims]
[in English] My name is Dmitry Bivol.
[contestant, in Korean] This is it.
-It's the last match.
-I can't wait to see this.
This one's gonna be fun.
It's the highlight of the day.
The main dish.
-It really is the main dish.
-For real.
[narrator]
This is I Am Boxer's aqua ring match.
Blue corner,
-Hong Sungmin.
-[contestants murmur]
-Oh, wow…
-[chuckles]
-[contestant 1] Tyson Hong…
-[contestant 2] Tyson, yes…
[contestant 3] Wonder how he'll play this.
[contestant 4 laughs]
[contestant 5] Nice performance.
[contestant 6] He's pretty explosive.
Man, he's built.
[contestant 7]
Sungmin is seriously strong.
[Dex] I didn't expect three challengers
to step up to Kim Minuk. [chuckles]
I'm going to go with
Hong Sungmin.
-Hong Sungmin.
-[exclaims]
[exclaims]
This is wild.
-[Jongkook] For real?
-[Dex] Seriously, this is his pick?
Really?
[narrator] Red corner,
Kim Minuk.
-All right.
-All right.
Whoa, awesome.
All right!
[huffs]
Why does he look cool
doing basically anything? [chuckles]
-He's got that swag.
-[chuckles]
He's so cool.
He's gonna look dope here. [laughs]
Let's go!
This is it.
[contestant 1]
He's a bit on the older side, isn't he?
[contestant 2] He's 38, I think?
[contestant 1] That's a 14-year age gap.
[Dex] Before we start,
let's hear a few words from both fighters.
KIM MINUK VS HONG SUNGMIN
I've always wanted to learn
from this seasoned pro here.
But in the ring,
everyone's equal.
As much as I respect him,
I'll give it everything I have.
[judges exclaim]
I'll show you what I'm like
when I'm in my element.
-That's a good line.
-[all exclaim]
Nicely said.
Hong Sungmin was on my list
of top contenders.
I wanted to face a strong opponent.
-I'm glad he challenged me.
-[all exclaim]
Thank you for making this happen.
-That's cool.
-Well said.
Everything about him is cool.
Total Bro-Snyper.
-They're amazing.
-Kim Minuk's still got fire, huh?
-[Jongkook] He is burning hot.
-Indeed.
-This won't be easy for Sungmin, though.
-Right.
-[Lee] The amateur Mike Tyson versus…
-[contestant exclaiming]
…the textbook example of a pro.
[breathing heavily]
[contestant 1]
Both guys are insanely skilled.
I'm curious what kind of fight we'll see
with their feet in the water.
With the way Sungmin fights,
he might not work as well in the water.
[Lee]
I have no idea how this one will play out.
[Hyunman] This is like something
straight out of a movie.
[Donghoe] This is gonna be a fun one.
I was feeling secretly excited.
-[in English] Box!
-[bell rings]
-[in Korean] Let's go!
-You got this!
[contestant 1] Go, Kim Minuk!
[contestants] Let's go!
KIM MINUK X HONG SUNGMIN
-[contestant 2 exclaims]
-[contestant 3] That guard is superb.
[grunting, groaning]
-Nothing's getting through.
-[contestants exclaiming]
[Lee] His guard's airtight,
shots keep bouncing off.
[contestant 4] All right, rock solid!
[contestant 5] His guard's adamantine.
Nothing's breaking that.
-His guard's tough to crack.
-Yeah, it's unbreakable.
It's like he's hitting a wall.
[Sungmin] His defense was solid,
so instead of staying still,
I kept tapping at his guard,
just poking nonstop,
thinking it'll have to open up.
[Lee] That tactical exchange…
[Dex exclaims]
-[contestant 1] There it is!
-[contestants exclaiming]
Nice going!
[tense music playing]
[contestant 2] He broke his guard.
Look at that combo.
Still, he managed to counter.
Nice counter.
-[contestant 2] All right!
-Wow.
[Minuk] I was thinking,
"Let's meet fire with fire."
"Come on in."
[contestant 1]
Looks like he's analyzing him, right?
[contestant 2] You're right.
[Minuk, in English] Okay.
[in Korean] Once I had him on my line,
I could read him clearly.
[contestant 1, contestant 2 gasp]
[electronic music playing]
[contestant 3] His double jabs are sharp.
[contestant 4] They're crisp and clean.
Man, he's driving that right in.
KIM MINUK X HONG SUNGMIN
[contestants gasping]
[contestant 2]
This is what we've been waiting for.
This is so intense, man. It's awesome.
[suspenseful music playing]
-[contestant 1 cheers]
-[contestant 2 exclaims]
[contestant 3, in English] Nice timing!
[contestant 4, in Korean]
He's fighting with ruler-like precision.
I'm watching with my jaw dropped.
Everyone's mesmerized watching this.
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 1]
Every single movement is pure artistry.
[contestants exclaiming]
[dramatic music playing]
[contestant 2] He's still got it.
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 3] Look at that grit!
Whoa, those double jabs…
KIM MINUK X HONG SUNGMIN
-[bell rings]
-[referee, in English] Stop!
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 1] So this is real boxing.
[exclaims]
[contestant 2] I'm speechless.
Wow, seriously.
You can't judge true masters instantly.
You need to observe for a while.
[Minuk] It's a hard setup
to play on the defense.
Plus, there's the water.
So for the second round,
I decided to target Hong Sungmin's body.
Body shots sap your stamina
more than head shots do,
so I figured I'd target the body.
-[bell rings]
-[in English] Box!
KIM MINUK X HONG SUNGMIN
[contestant 1 exclaims]
[Jongkook, in Korean]
That body hook, though.
[tense music playing]
[contestant 2] Okay, the torso.
[contestant 3] Nice torso shot.
-[contestant 4 exclaims]
-[Lee] That body shot landed clean!
[Minuk] Given his weight class,
the body shots affected him
exactly the way I expected.
[Sungmin]
Those body shots started landing.
And yeah, they hurt.
[Minuk] All right.
[contestants exclaiming]
[dramatic music playing]
[contestants gasping]
The sensor lit up!
[contestant] Sungmin, lower your stance!
[Sungmin] I knew I'd lose
the moment I let him get under my skin.
[contestants exclaiming]
[Jongkook] This is insane.
What am I watching right now?
KIM MINUK X HONG SUNGMIN
-[contestant 1] All right!
-[contestant 2 exclaims]
[contestant 3 laughs] This is rad.
[contestant 4]
Those two are literally shooting a movie.
[suspenseful music playing]
[contestant 5, contestant 6 exclaim]
Sungmin's caught.
[contestant 1] He ate that shot.
[contestant 2]
Minuk is seriously good, though.
[Minuk]
I'd held back in rounds one and two
and kept parts of my game hidden.
[Seungjun] The size difference
isn't affecting him one bit.
-[Dex] Are we getting extra time?
-[exclaims]
-Oh, Sungmin is…
-[exclaims]
Sungmin's starting to gas out.
[Sungmin] Honestly, this would've been
tough even in a dry, regular ring.
[contestant 1] It's all about stamina now.
[dramatic music playing]
[contestant 2] Ten seconds! Let's go!
-[contestants gasping]
-[bell rings]
-[bell ringing]
-[in English] Stop!
[gasping]
-[Dex, in Korean] Goodness.
-[gasps]
[contestant 1] Gosh, that was insane.
That was freaking cool.
[Jongkook] This is the true definition
-of a hold-your-breath moment.
-[Dex] That's right.
[contestant]
Why isn't Sungmin sitting down?
Is it pride holding him up?
He does seem exhausted.
This tactic is meant
to mess with your opponent.
Apparently,
some fighters stay standing on purpose.
To crush your will.
[contestants applauding]
[Sungmin]
It was much more exhausting than expected.
Kim Minuk is a well-seasoned fighter.
I knew I'd lose
the moment I let him get under my skin.
So I tried hard not to get pulled into it
and kept thinking to myself…
"This is the last round."
"And I have to win."
[bell rings]
Okay, last round. Touch gloves.
[Dex] This is it! It's the last round!
-[contestant 1] Last round!
-[contestant 2] All right!
[in English] Box!
KIM MINUK X HONG SUNGMIN
[contestant 3, in Korean] All right!
[contestant 4]
Where's that uppercut, though?
[contestant 5 exclaims]
[tense music playing]
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 6]
He claimed the center just like that.
He's cornered him, now he'll strike.
[Jongkook] Yeah, he's going in.
He's really trying to end this, huh?
[Sungmin] I was a bit rattled
at the start of the third round.
I thought, "This is bad."
[contestant 1]
How do you break that guard?
[contestant 2] It's not easy.
[Lee] Hong Sungmin is waiting to counter.
[contestants exclaiming]
[gasps, exclaims]
He read everything and fired back!
[Lee] Whenever Minuk
throws that right hand,
he counters with his right hook.
[Sungmin]
When Kim Minuk threw a right hook,
I saw his right jaw open up,
so I threw one there immediately.
Then I felt Kim Minuk's guard
start to spread out a bit.
So I thought,
"Time to put on a spurt and push on."
[contestants exclaiming]
[dramatic music playing]
[exclaims, gasps]
Their speed's insane.
Like bam, bam, bam.
-[contestant 1] Let's go!
-[contestant 2 exclaims]
[contestant 3] This is pure art.
[contestant 4] We're halfway there!
[Dex] Last round!
[contestant 5]
This final stretch is brutal.
-[contestant 1] Last one!
-[contestant 2] All right!
[contestant 6] You're almost there, Minuk!
[Dex] Let's go!
Stopping will only slow you down!
-[contestant 7] All right, focus!
-[contestant 8 laughs]
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 7] …focus!
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 1]
Hong Sungmin is doing incredibly well.
[contestant 2] Let's go, Kim Minuk!
[contestants cheering]
-[contestant 2, contestant 3 exclaims]
-[contestant 4] Kim Minuk, you got this!
Keep going!
His stamina might be the issue.
-[contestant 5] Come on!
-[contestant 6] Thirty seconds!
[Minuk] With just a few seconds remaining,
I wanted to pour out whatever I had left.
I thought,
"Let me do this. It's do or die now."
[heroic music playing]
[contestants exclaiming]
Just go all in now!
[contestant 3] Keep going till the end!
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 1] Keep your head in the game!
[contestant 2, contestant 3] All right!
KIM MINUK X HONG SUNGMIN
[Minuk] I admit I was kind of in a daze.
I felt that dopamine explosion you feel
when you've poured everything out.
-[contestants cheer]
-[bell rings]
-That was absolutely insane.
-[Jongkook laughs]
[Jongkook, Dex gasp]
[laughing]
[contestant 1] Man, that was amazing.
[contestant 2 gasps]
-I fought a legend like that?
-[laughs]
[Jongkook]
I'm at a complete loss for words.
Wow, I mean…
I mean, Kim Minuk… He's…
He gives me a headache every single time.
Fantastic fight.
That was a fantastic fight.
Let me announce the result.
[tense music playing]
The winner is…
[Minuk] I thought I deserved the win.
[Sungmin] I was sure I had it.
Hong Sungmin from the blue corner!
[contestants cheering]
Hong Sungmin from the blue corner!
BLUE CORNER
HONG SUNGMIN SURVIVES
I feel so small, man.
Going last came with its own pressure.
I'll take the weight
that comes with beating someone
I respect as much as Minuk
and participate in I Am Boxer
with even more hunger.
It's been a while since I sparred
like it was an actual fight.
I'm actually really relieved now.
I'm glad I still got to show what I have.
Moving forward,
if boxing ever needs me,
just give me a call.
I'll be there. Thank you.
AQUA RING SURVIVORS
SEUNGJUN, JUNSEO, TAEKMIN, SUNGMIN
[contestant] It's the final match.
Here we go.
What a big match.
Are we seeing this now?
-That's right.
-Goodness.
-Oh, boy.
-[Jongkook] What do we do now?
I'd totally forgotten.
-Well, I'm tapping out.
-[Dex laughs] Same here.
Darn it.
[announcer]
This is I Am Boxer's cage ring match.
Fighters, step in.
Red corner, Kim Donghoe.
Let's go!
[contestant 1] You got this, man!
[contestant 2]
Man, I can't wait to see this.
[tense music playing]
[Jongkook]
If you wish to challenge Kim Donghoe,
please step forward.
[Lee] Will anyone step forward?
[Jongkook, Lee exclaim]
I had an inkling.
He's actually stepping forward.
[contestants gasping, cheering]
[contestant 1] You're a legend!
[contestant 3] It's the Grim Reaper.
Here's another
pay-to-view material right here.
-We get to see this?
-Feels like the finals already.
[Donghoe]
When Myung Hyunman challenged me,
I thought, "Wow, this is perfect."
I'd always wanted to go up against him.
I think we could make a hell of a fight.
[Hyunman]
There's only one guy I'm wary of,
Kim Donghoe.
Our matchup came sooner than I expected.
Fine, let's get this over with.
[announcer] Blue corner, Myung Hyunman.
All right!
Let's go!
[contestant 1]
He's got real knockout power.
[contestant 2]
This is terrifying. I'm scared already.
[contestant 4]
They make the cage look small.
[contestant 5] They're massive.
Looks like we're in for a ride. [laughs]
[contestant 6]
There's a bit of a weight difference.
[contestant 7] Maybe 20 kilos?
[gasps] I can't believe we're seeing this.
The best versus the best.
It's an honor to have the chance
to face someone like Kim Donghoe.
I'll do my best to show what I can do.
I'll give it my all
and make this a great fight.
-[Jongkook exclaims]
-[contestants applaud]
Man, this one's impossible to predict.
[announcer] Please prepare for the fight.
[tense music playing]
[Jongkook]
Donghoe doesn't really fight close-range.
Right.
-I'm not sure how he'll do in there.
-Yeah.
You need to dominate early.
Myung Hyunman's a beast.
[contestant 1]
And he's insanely strong too.
He just drops all the heavyweights.
[contestant 2] If that lands, it's over.
-[Lee] Hyunman has the one-shot power.
-[Jongkook exclaims]
In terms of pure boxing skill,
Kim Donghoe is on a higher level.
But who knows?
No one can know how this will go.
[Donghoe] The weight difference
didn't really matter to me.
I was confident I could win.
[Hyunman] I'm not easy work.
I'm nothing like any opponent
he's faced before.
Buckle up for this.
[contestant 1] This is gonna be epic.
[contestant 2] It's gonna be fun.
[announcer]
Kim Donghoe versus Myung Hyunman.
[Jongkook] Gosh, this is…
[announcer] Let us begin the fight.
Everyone, let's hear it for them.
[in English] Box!
Box!
[contestant 1, in Korean] Let's go!
KIM DONGHOE X MYUNG HYUNMAN
[contestant 2] Don't get worked up. Go.
[contestant 3] His feints are scary.
[contestant 4]
Yeah, since he blitzes in right after.
[contestants gasping]
[contestants gasping]
[contestant 5] That's scary.
[Donghoe] When he hit my guard,
I thought, "Man, he's strong."
"He's strong."
That's what I felt.
I thought, "One clean shot can finish me."
"Let's keep the guard tight
and slip the shots."
[contestant 1] Nice! That landed!
[contestant 2] Guard up!
[contestant 1] One shot could drop him.
[contestant 2]
They might break down the cage.
[contestant 3] Nice cover!
[contestant 4] It's crazy how clean
he throws when he's that loose.
-[contestant 6] Relax!
-[contestant 7] The Ghost is here.
Feels like a polar bear
and a brown bear fighting.
[contestant 1] Get in there.
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 3] Whoa, that power…
He's basically flailing.
[contestant 5] Move! Guard up!
[Lee] He's trying to push him rough.
[Jongkook] I think you're right.
He's going dirty boxing on him.
So that's his game plan.
[Hyunman]
Kim Donghoe's punches are really fast.
In this cage setup,
I figured I needed
to neutralize Kim Donghoe's main weapon.
It's called "dirty boxing."
You hit while staying in close.
You grab the hands,
and clinch pressure to shut him down.
That's the technique I used.
[in English] Break!
Break.
KIM DONGHOE X MYUNG HYUNMAN
-[Lee, in Korean] He's clinching again.
-[Jongkook] Right.
[contestant]
Is that the strategy he came in with?
If it comes down to straight punching,
Donghoe would clearly have the advantage.
It could really go either way now.
[contestant] Myung Hyunman came in
with a smart game plan.
[Jongkook] He's ditching punches
and going full clinch.
He's smothering him.
That's what this feels like.
That looks miserable to be stuck in.
[Donghoe] I kept thinking,
"I need to get out of this clinch,"
but he was just too strong.
I couldn't shake him off.
Man, that looks suffocating.
He's completely shut him down.
[Jongkook]
He's giving him a real hard time.
[contestant 1] Looks painfully stifling.
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 4] He spun him back.
[contestant 5]
This is Myung Hyunman's best bet.
This is the way to win.
-[referee, in English] Break!
-[bell rings]
-Stop!
-[contestant 6, in Korean] All right!
Man, I don't know.
This could go either way.
This is the most viable strategy, though.
The problem is,
Hyunman hasn't really landed anything.
He barely threw actual strikes.
If they trade in that clinch
and fight it out, it could go either way.
[Donghoe]
I didn't do much in the first round.
I knew I couldn't go on like this.
So in the next round,
I knew I had to attack
whenever I got him off me
and score some points.
[Hyunman]
I instantly knew he was no pushover.
I needed to find more openings
and do more damage.
[announcer] Fighters, step in.
[bell rings]
-[contestant] Let's go!
-[referee, in English] Box!
KIM DONGHOE X MYUNG HYUNMAN
[contestant 1, in Korean] There you go!
[contestant 3] He's firing right away.
-[contestant 5] All right!
-[contestant 6] Damn, that's weighty.
[rock music playing]
[contestants exclaiming]
Even a single shot's seriously dangerous.
Nice, he's blocking
and dodging everything.
[Donghoe] I thought,
"I've got to show something this round."
"I'll attack hard when he's off me."
[in English] Break!
[contestant, in Korean]
Don't get clipped there.
[contestants exclaiming]
[contestant 1]
He shouldn't give him any openings.
[contestant 4 laughs]
His boxing is incredible.
He landed shots through every little gap.
[in English] Break!
[contestant 1] All right!
[contestant 1] Man, see his combos there?
He's found his rhythm.
[contestant 3] He's trying to ice him.
[contestant 4] Catch him!
[Donghoe] I couldn't lose just yet.
So I went all in.
[Jongkook] Thirty seconds!
Thirty seconds left! Thirty seconds!
KIM DONGHOE X MYUNG HYUNMAN
He needs to show up for this last one.
-[in English] Break!
-[contestant 1, in Korean] Nice!
-[contestant 2] Doing well!
-[contestant 3] Catch him!
[Hyunman] Kim Donghoe kept slipping
and landing shots on me.
I needed that one decisive blow.
So I decided to pour
all the energy I had left into this.
[dramatic music playing]
-[Dex] Ten seconds!
-[contestants cheer]
[contestant 1] Let's go one last time!
[contestant 2] There's his kill shot.
Whoa, that landed!
[contestant 3] Last one!
KIM DONGHOE X MYUNG HYUNMAN
-[in English] Break!
-[bell rings]
-Break!
-[bell rings]
[Jongkook laughs, gasps]
He should've started off like that.
He was waiting for that last minute.
[contestant 1]
They're on a different level.
[contestant 2] His boxing is superb.
He unloaded everything at the very end.
[announcer]
We will now announce the result.
The winner of this match is…
[Hyunman]
I wanted to take the win so badly,
so I felt extremely nervous.
[Donghoe] My heart was racing.
I was worried my hand wouldn't get raised.
[Lee] Kim Donghoe from the red corner.
[contestants applaud]
RED CORNER KIM DONGHOE SURVIVES
-[Jongkook] Nice.
-That was nerve-wracking.
[Dex exclaims]
[Donghoe] I was so happy that I won.
[Dex] Myung Hyunman,
you've been eliminated from I Am Boxer.
Any last words?
Yeah, I'm disappointed,
but that's the fight I gave today.
While fighting someone like Kim Donghoe,
I learned a lot in a short time.
I'll work on the areas
where I fell short and grow from this.
You did well. Well fought!
[Hyunman] I feel honored
to have been part of this fight.
Even though I lost,
this is a fight that will stay with me,
honestly, for the rest of my career.
[soft music playing]
[announcer] The cage ring.
The tag ring.
The aqua ring.
All matches have now concluded.
The blockbuster boxing survival show,
I Am Boxer.
Round 3 is now officially over.
To all 15 fighters
who survived the three rings,
I offer my heartfelt congratulations.
-Thank you.
-Thank you.
Well done, everyone.
Well fought.
I made it this far.
Fifteen, huh?
Sounds like an achievement.
[Dex] Well fought.
[Jongkook] Thank you.
-Well fought.
-You did well, guys.
-Well done.
-Thank you.
Hey, well done.
-You were awesome.
-Thank you.
Seriously, you did so well.
It's a shame to send you off like this.
No, I had fun.
-Thanks, Hyunman.
-Thank you.
Thanks. Well done.
[stirring music playing]
[Hyunman] I'm definitely disappointed.
It's upsetting, of course.
But after retiring from the ring,
I've solely been living as a family man.
So coming onto I Am Boxer
and trading punches with real boxers again
made me feel like the boxer
I used to watch on TV.
It was a truly rewarding experience.
Boxing has been with me for 26 years,
so almost half my life.
It has been amazing and fun
to have been able
to put myself out there again.
It was genuinely fulfilling.
-[Lee] This should be enough, right?
-[Dex] Yeah.
But why are there so many gloves here?
These are gifts for the students
at Seoul Physical Education High School.
-You prepared these for them?
-That's right.
[gasps]
Remember the punching bags
we used in our matches?
[Dex] Oh, the ones we used in Round 2?
[Lee] I'm thinking we could sign them
and send them off too.
[Dex exclaims]
Okay, I got these.
-No, no.
-But you hurt your ribs.
-Yeah, but I can still lift.
-No, I'll take this.
I can carry it, really.
-No, I'll do it.
-I got this.
-Why'd you hurt your ribs?
-I can still do it.
-I got this.
-Oh, boy.
Where should we load this? In this car?
-That's right.
-Is it yours?
No, sir.
This is for the winner.
[Lee]
A prize of 300 million won and this car?
Honestly, I'm a bit jealous.
-I should've competed instead.
-[Dex laughs]
[Dex] A large SUV like this
is the true symbol of success.
It even has a touchpad.
Hit this button and the seat reclines.
[Lee] Oh, it's actually moving.
-Want me to recline it?
-No, I'm good.
-Really?
-Yeah, my ribs hurt.
If I lean back,
the pain shoots up tenfold.
It hurts when I laugh too.
-So try not to make me laugh.
-Got it.
Here we are
at Seoul Physical Education High School.
[Dex]
Feels like a school with real tradition.
-One, two, three!
-One, two, three!
One, two, three!
-Hi there.
-Hello, everyone.
-Hello, sir.
-Hello, everyone.
-[Dex] Was today's school lunch good?
-No, it wasn't.
Well, these will be good.
[students cheer]
[Dex] Take off your gloves and come.
-[student 2] Okay.
-[student 3] Got it.
Since we're here,
we should feed the kids something.
Let's get them some food.
I'm going to order delivery.
There are around 10 kids,
so 20 portions?
-Okay.
-But first, you pick something out.
-What are you getting?
-I've got a new favorite these days.
The BBQ Rotisserie-Style Chicken,
and this one, marked as a popular item,
the "Anchang Beef."
It's real tasty, you know.
All right, I love protein.
-Protein's crucial for aspiring athletes.
-Yes, of course.
-[student 1] Thank you for the food.
-[student 2] Appreciate it.
[Dex] Please enjoy.
How does it taste?
-Tasty.
-Delicious.
Well, that's a relief.
Help yourself.
There's a lot of chicken breast in here.
And it tastes good.
-[student 2] Gotta have that wow factor.
-[Lee] Exactly.
[Dex] You're all good-looking.
[Lee]
Boxers these days are really good-looking.
Say they've been boxing for a long time,
and they look like Dex.
That probably means they're really good.
Say they look like me.
That means
they probably take a lot of shots.
That means
they probably take a lot of shots.
He kind of looks like Mike Tyson.
-Let me get a closer look.
-[Dex] He looks like Tyson.
-But he looks manly.
-Nice face.
You have my kind of face.
[student] I take a lot of hits.
[Dex] Do you, really? [laughs]
I don't know how much help this'll be,
but we've brought some gloves
and punching bags over.
-Use them, train hard, and keep it up.
-Keep up the good work.
Your footwork's gonna improve in no time.
Hey, Yonghyeok's girlfriend, Shin .
-What's your name?
-Yonghyeok.
Yonghyeok, you got this!
-I got this!
-Great.
[students] Thank you.
[students applauding]
[Jongkook]
Today, Master Don here has invited
a very special guest!
[in English] My name is Dmitry Bivol.
[Jongkook, in Korean]
Please welcome Dmitry Bivol!
-[contestant 1] Whoa, that's really him!
-[contestants cheering]
[Dex]
They're smelling his belt and everything.
[contestant 2] How is this even real?
I can't believe I'm seeing this right now.
[Lee] You're about to witness
a fight more extreme
than anything you've ever seen.
[in English] Box!
-[contestant 1] They're both insane.
-[contestant 2] This is intense.
He wants the KO finish.
[contestant 2]
Ten seconds left! Hang in there!
[in English] Heavyweights.
[Dex, in Korean]
I was hoping to see this matchup.
[contestant 1] I was bleeding.
[contestant 2] I knew I could still fight.
[in English] He's a crazy guy.
[contestant 1]
It didn't matter if I was bleeding.
The survivor of this match is…
no one.
-[contestant 1 groans]
-[contestant 2] Everyone's eliminated?
[contestant 1] It was a place
beyond anything we could've imagined.
[contestant 2] So it's not over yet.
[tense music playing]
[contestant 3] We fought to the death,
and now we're doing it again?
[contestant 4]
Finally, the moment has come.
[upbeat music playing]