Seo Hee Ham ( ko, 함서희 ; born ), written Ham Seo-Hee in Korean order, is a South Korean professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

and

kickboxer Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, gener ...

. She is currently signed to

ONE Championship ONE Championship (formerly ONE Fighting Championship) is a Singaporean combat sports promotion. Founded on 14 July 2011 by entrepreneur Chatri Sityodtong and former ESPN Star Sports senior executive Victor Cui, its events have featured mixe ...

, where she is ranked #2 in the ONE Championship Women's Atomweight rankings. Ham previously competed in the MMA promotions Deep, Smackgirl, Jewels, Road FC, UFC, and Rizin. She is a former Jewels Atomweight Champion, former Road FC Women's Atomweight Champion, and former Rizin Women's Super Atomweight Champion.

Early life

Ham was born on in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. She started training in kickboxing in 2004. With few female fighters to train with in South Korea, Ham regularly trains with male fighters, such as fellow gym member

Dong Hyun Kim Kim Dong-hyun ( ko, 김동현, 金東炫; born November 17, 1981), anglicized as Dong Hyun Kim, is a retired South Korean mixed martial artist who most notably fought in the UFC's welterweight division. He was signed by the UFC after fightin ...

. She is nicknamed "Hamderlei Silva" because of the similarities between her fighting style and

Wanderlei Silva Wanderlei César da Silva ( , , ; born 3 July 1976) is a Brazilian-American former mixed martial artist who competed in Japan's Pride Fighting Championships and the American-based Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He holds the record for the ...

's style. In Japan, she is occasionally nicknamed "Arale-chan", in reference to her looks outside of the ring bearing resemblance to the character

Arale Norimaki is a fictional character and the protagonist of the '' Dr. Slump'' manga series, created by Akira Toriyama. She is a robot built by Senbei Norimaki who looks like a young girl. She is known for her naïveté, energetic personality, lack of common ...

from the

manga Manga ( Japanese: 漫画 ) are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long prehistory in earlier Japanese art. The term ''manga'' is use ...

series '' Dr. Slump''. Currently, Ham uses "Hamzzang" as her official nickname.

Mixed martial arts career

Japan

Ham debuted against Japanese MMA veteran Hisae Watanabe on at ''Deep 28 Impact'', upsetting the favorite Watanabe by winning via unanimous decision. Ham was defeated by Miku Matsumoto via triangle choke submission on at ''clubDeep Toyama: Barbarian Festival 6''. Ham rebounded back from her first loss with a unanimous decision victory over Ayumi Saito on at '' Smackgirl 2007: Queens' Hottest Summer''. On at ''Smackgirl 7th anniversary: Starting Over'', Ham challenged Smackgirl Lightweight Champion Yuka Tsuji for her title, losing by unanimous decision in a match that Tsuji completely dominated. On , Ham participated in the ''Smackgirl World ReMix Tournament 2008 Opening Round'', where she defeated Saori Ishioka by unanimous decision. In the tournament semi-finals on , Abe Ani Combat Club star

Megumi Fujii Megumi Fujii (藤井恵 ''Fujii Megumi'', born April 26, 1974) is a retired Japanese people, Japanese mixed martial artist. Biography Fujii started Judo at the age of 3 due to her father's influence and continued Judo at Shukugawa Gakuin Juni ...

handed Ham her third professional defeat by submitting her with an

armbar An armlock in grappling is a single or double joint lock that hyperextends, hyperflexes or hyperrotates the elbow joint or shoulder joint. An armlock that hyper-extends the arm is known as an armbar, and it includes the traditional armbar, p ...

in the ''Smackgirl World ReMix Tournament 2008 Second Round''. After a year without fights in MMA, Ham made her debut with MMA promotion Jewels and earned another victory on by defeating Misaki Takimoto by unanimous decision at '' Jewels 5th Ring''. Ham next participated at '' Jewels 9th Ring'' in the first round of the inaugural Jewels Lightweight Queen Tournament, held to crown the first Jewels Lightweight Champion, where she defeated Mai Ichii by unanimous decision on . Ham was slated to compete at '' Jewels 10th Ring'', but since she decided to participate in two kickboxing matches with conflicting dates, Jewels released her. Jewels later announced that she would still participate in the semi-finals of the Lightweight Queen Tournament at '' Jewels 11th Ring''. Ham faced Mika Nagano in the semi-finals and defeated Nagano by split decision. In the tournament final later that night, Ham was defeated by Ayaka Hamasaki via unanimous decision. Ham had a rematch against Saori Ishioka on at DEEP: 52 Impact in

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.4 ...

. She once again defeated Ishioka by unanimous decision. On , Ham faced Anna Saito in a mixed martial arts rules match at ''Gladiator 15: GI 2''. Ham defeated Saito by unanimous decision. Ham faced Mei Yamaguchi in a ''Jewels vs. Valkyrie'' match at ''

Jewels 15th Ring ''Jewels 15th Ring'' was a mixed martial arts (MMA) event held by promotion Jewels on at Shinjuku Face in Kabukicho, Tokyo, Japan. As in the previous Jewels event, ''15th Ring'' featured a Jewels vs. Valkyrie theme, pitting fighters from both p ...

'' on . She defeated Yamaguchi by unanimous decision. Ham challenged Jewels champion Ayaka Hamasaki in a rematch at '' Jewels 17th Ring'' on . She was defeated by TKO (corner stoppage) after the first round when she could not continue due to injury. On , Ham faced pro wrestler Ryo Mizunami at ''Gladiator: Dream, Power and Hope''. She defeated Mizunami by submission due to an armbar early in the first round. Ham dropped down in weight to challenge

Naho Sugiyama , also known by her nickname or Sugi Rock, is a Japanese female mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter. She has competed professionally since 2009. In 2011, she became the first Jewels featherweight champion. Besides Jewels, Sugiyama has also compete ...

for the Jewels Atomweight queen title at ''Jewels 24th Ring'' on . She defeated Sugiyama by unanimous decision to become the new Jewels Atomweight queen champion. Following Jewels' closure, Ham's title was renamed the Deep Jewels Atomweight championship. She defended the title against Sadae Numata at ''Deep Jewels 2'' on . Ham won the fight by unanimous decision.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In early November 2014 Seo Hee Ham signed a four-fight contract with

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

to join UFC's Strawweight division. She made her debut against Joanne Calderwood at The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned Finale on December 12, 2014. She lost the fight by unanimous decision. Ham was expected to face

Bec Rawlings Rebecca Anne Rawlings (born 11 February 1989) is an Australian mixed martial artist and bare-knuckle boxer, who currently competes in the flyweight division. She was ranked as a contender strawweight (106-115 lb) fighter according to th ...

on May 10, 2015 at UFC Fight Night 65. However, Ham pulled out of the bout on April 10 and was replaced by Lisa Ellis. After nearly a year away from the company, Ham returned to face Cortney Casey on November 28, 2015 at UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Masvidal. She won the fight via unanimous decision. The win also earned Ham her first ''Fight of the Night'' bonus award. She lost to Danielle Taylor at

UFC Fight Night 101 ''UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. Brunson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 101'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship held on November 27, 2016, at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. B ...

on Nov. 26, 2016 via split decision and was subsequently released from the promotion.

Road FC

After briefly considering retirement, Ham signed with Road FC where she became the atomweight champion with a victory over Mina Kurobe. On December 23, 2017, she successfully defended her atomweight championship with a first round stoppage over Jinh Yu Frey.

Rizin

On June 21, 2019, it was announced Ham would face former DEEP Champion Tomo Maesawa at Rizin 17 on July 28, 2019. She won the fight by TKO in the first round. Next, Ham faced Miyuu Yamamoto at Rizin 19 on October 12, 2019. She won the fight via technical knockout in the second round. With two consecutive victories in Rizin, Ham earned a title shot against Ayaka Hamasaki at Rizin 20 on December 31, 2019. She won the trilogy fight via split decision, becoming the second Rizin Women's Super Atomweight Champion. Ham vacated her Rizin Atomweight title in October 2020, as she couldn't come to an agreement with Rizin for her next fight.

ONE Championship

After vacating her Rizin Atomweight title, Ham signed with

, where she will compete in the atomweight division. She was scheduled to take part in the ONE Atomweight Grand Prix. It was reported that Ham will face Denice Zamboanga in the quarter-final of the ONE Women's Atomweight Grand Prix at ONE Championship: Empower on May 28, 2021. The event was later postponed due to

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quickl ...

precautions. The event was rescheduled for September 3, 2021. She won the close bout via split decision. Due to the controversy the decision stirred, the bout was placed under review but the ONE Championship committee left the result standing. Ham was scheduled to face

Stamp Fairtex Nadthawan Panthong ( th, ณัฐวรรณ พานทอง, born November 16, 1997), known professionally as Stamp Fairtex ( th, แสตมป์ แฟร์เท็กซ์, links=no), is a Thai Muay Thai kickboxer and mixed marti ...

in the semi-final bout of ONE Women's Atomweight Grand Prix at ONE Championship: Next Generation on October 29, 2021. Ham had to pull out of the bout due to injury and was replaced by alternate bout winner Julie Mezabarba. Ham was scheduled to rematch Denice Zamboanga at ONE: X on December 5, 2021. Their rematch was later postponed to March 6, 2022. Ham failed the hydration test the day before the fight, and was given until midnight to pass. Ham was able to pass the test in the mandated time and won the fight by unanimous decision. Ham was scheduled to face Itsuki Hirata at

ONE 163 ''ONE 163: Akimoto vs. Petchtanong'' was a Combat sport event produced by ONE Championship that took place on November 19, 2022, at the Singapore Indoor Stadium in Kallang, Singapore. Background A ONE Bantamweight Kickboxing World Championship ...

on November 18, 2022. However, Hirata missed weight and failed the hydration test, and the match was scrapped after Ham declined a catchweight bout due to Hirata's history of missing weight.

Kickboxing career

Ham had her first professional kickboxing match at ''CMA Festival 2: Ikuhisa Minowa Debut 10 Anniversary Tournament'' on , where she defeated former Smackgirl Open Weight Champion Megumi Yabushita by unanimous decision. On , Ham defeated Ayano Oishi in a

K-1 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...

rules match by unanimous decision at ''Japan-South Korea friendship international martial arts tournament Gladiator Okayama tournament''. At '' Jewels 7th Ring'' on , Ham had an exhibition match against Shoot boxing rising star Rena Kubota. Ham earned another unanimous decision victory over Japanese fighter Miyu Matsui on at ''Gladiator 6'', winning the CMA KPW Lightweight Championship. On , Ham faced Megumi Yabushita for a second time at ''Gladiator 14: KOK Samurai Series''. Ham won the fight by TKO in the second round. On , Ham entered the ''2011 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup'' tournament. She defeated Emi Fujino and Mina in the opening rounds, but lost to

Erika Kamimura (born December 30, 1992 in Tokyo) is a professional Japanese kickboxer. She won the 2011 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup tournament. She is also the former Rise Queen champion, WBC World Women's Mini Flyweight champion, WPMF World Women's Mini Flyweigh ...

via unanimous decision in the tournament final. Ham faced

in a rematch at ''Rise 88'' on . She was defeated by unanimous decision. Ham entered the ''2012 Shoot Boxing Girls S-Cup'' on . She defeated Lisa Ellis to advance to the semi-final round, but lost to Rena Kubota via unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

*CMA/KPW Women's Champion ** CMA/KPW Women's Lightweight Championship (One time) *** Two successful title defenses * Jewels ** Jewels Atomweight Championship (One time) *** Two successful title defenses ** Jewels Lightweight Queen Tournament Runner-up *

** Fight of the Night (One time) *

Road Fighting Championship Road Fighting Championship (Road FC; ) is a South Korean-based mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion which was officially launched in 2010. Prior to December 2016, Road FC had held 52 events in three countries - South Korea, Japan, and China. Abou ...

** Road FC Women's Atomweight Championship (one time) *** Two successful title defenses *

Rizin Fighting Federation Rizin Fighting Federation (Rizin FF or Rizin) is a Japanese mixed martial arts organization created in 2015 by the former Pride Fighting Championships and Dream Stage Entertainment president Nobuyuki Sakakibara. Rizin was founded to be the sp ...

** Rizin Women's Super Atomweight Championship (one time)

Other activities

Ham defeated pro-wrestler Stalker Ichikawa by left high kick KO at ''Gladiator 10'' on . She defeated pro-wrestler Antonio Koinoki by KO at ''Gladiator 11'' on .

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 25–8 , Denice Zamboanga , Decision (unanimous) , ONE: X , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Kallang Kallang is a planning area and residential town located in the Central Region of Singapore. Development of the town is centered around the Kallang River, the longest river in Singapore. Kallang Planning Area is bounded by Toa Payoh in the n ...

, Singapore , , - , Win , align=center, 24–8 , Denice Zamboanga , Decision (split) , ONE Championship: Empower , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Singapore , , - , Win , align=center, 23–8 , Ayaka Hamasaki , Decision (split) , Rizin 20 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 22–8 , Miyuu Yamamoto , TKO (punches) , Rizin 19 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 9:42 ,

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 21–8 , Tomo Maesawa , TKO (knees) , Rizin 17 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:13 , Saitama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 20–8 , Jeong-Eun Park , Decision (unanimous) , Road FC 051 XX , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the Capital city, capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the North Korea, Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea ...

, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 19–8 , Jinh Yu Frey , TKO (punches) , Road FC 045 XX , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:40 ,

, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 18–8 , Mina Kurobe , TKO (punches) , Road FC 039 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 4:13 ,

, South Korea , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–8 , Danielle Taylor , Decision (split) , UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs. Brunson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

, Australia , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–7 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Hunt vs. Mir , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

, Australia , , - , Win , align=center, 17–6 , Cortney Casey , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Henderson vs. Masvidal , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, South Korea , , - , Loss , align=center, 16–6 , Joanne Calderwood , Decision (unanimous) , The Ultimate Fighter: A Champion Will Be Crowned Finale , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 16–5 , Saori Ishioka , Submission (armbar) , Deep Jewels 6 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:43 ,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 15–5 , Alyona Rassohyna , Decision (unanimous) ,

Road FC 018 The year 2014 was the 5th year in the history of the Road Fighting Championship, an MMA promotion based in South Korea. 2014 started with Road FC Korea 001 and ended with Road FC 020. List of events Road FC 020 ''Road FC 020'' was a ...

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 14–5 , Shino VanHoose , Decision (unanimous) , Road FC Korea 003: Korea vs. Brazil , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 13–5 , Sadae Numata , Decision (unanimous) , Deep Jewels 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 12–5 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 24th Ring , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 11–5 ,

Ryo Mizunami , better known by her ring name Ryo Mizunami, is a Japanese professional wrestler and mixed martial artist. She is best known for her time in Pro Wrestling Wave. She is also known for her appearances in other Japanese promotions such as Big Ja ...

, Submission (armbar) , Gladiator: Dream, Power and Hope , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:05 ,

Sapporo ( ain, サッ・ポロ・ペッ, Satporopet, lit=Dry, Great River) is a city in Japan. It is the largest city north of Tokyo and the largest city on Hokkaido, the northernmost main island of the country. It ranks as the fifth most populous ci ...

, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 10–5 , Ayaka Hamasaki , TKO (corner stoppage) , Jewels 17th Ring , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 10–4 , Mei Yamaguchi , Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 9–4 , Anna Saito , Decision (unanimous) , Gladiator 15: GI 2 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Kawasaki Kawasaki ( ja, 川崎, Kawasaki, river peninsula, links=no) may refer to: Places *Kawasaki, Kanagawa, a Japanese city **Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki, a ward in Kawasaki, Kanagawa **Kawasaki City Todoroki Arena **Kawasaki Stadium, a multi-sport stadium *K ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 8–4 , Saori Ishioka , Decision (unanimous) , Deep: 52 Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 7–4 , Ayaka Hamasaki , Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 11th Ring , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 7–3 , Mika Nagano , Decision (split) , Jewels 11th Ring , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 6–3 , Mai Ichii , Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 9th Ring , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 5–3 , Misaki Takimoto , Decision (unanimous) , Jewels 5th Ring , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 4–3 ,

, Submission (armbar) , Smackgirl - World ReMix Tournament 2008 Second Round , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:39 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 4–2 , Saori Ishioka , Decision (unanimous) , Smackgirl - World ReMix Tournament 2008 Opening Round , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 3–2 , Yuka Tsuji , Decision (unanimous) , Smackgirl 7th Anniversary: Starting Over , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Amantiva Golbahar , Submission (rear-naked choke) , X-Impact World Cup , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:10 , Suwon, South Korea , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Ayumi Saito , Decision (unanimous) , Smackgirl 2007: Queens' Hottest Summer , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan , , - , Loss , align=center, 1–1 , Miku Matsumoto , Submission (triangle choke) , Deep: clubDeep Toyama: Barbarian Festival 6 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:44 , Toyama, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Hisae Watanabe , Decision (unanimous) , Deep: 28 Impact , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 , Tokyo, Japan ,

Kickboxing record

''Legend'':

References

External links

Ham Seo Hee
at

ONE 1 (one, unit, unity) is a number representing a single or the only entity. 1 is also a numerical digit and represents a single unit of counting or measurement. For example, a line segment of ''unit length'' is a line segment of length 1. I ...

* *
Seo Hee Ham
at Awakening Fighters
Profile
at Deep
Official blog
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ham, Seo Hee 1987 births Living people South Korean female kickboxers South Korean female mixed martial artists Atomweight mixed martial artists Strawweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing kickboxing Mixed martial artists utilizing shootboxing Road Fighting Championship champions Sportspeople from Gangwon Province, South Korea Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters Mixed martial arts champions