'I AM BOXER's fierce survival game narrowed the field to 15 survivors.
On the 5th episode of tvN 'I AM BOXER' (directed by Lee Won-woong, written by Kang Sook-kyung), which aired on Friday the 19th, the third fights held in the cage ring, tag ring and aqua ring concluded. Kim Dong-hoe, who won 14 consecutive national sports festival titles, defeated former kickboxing heavyweight champion Myung Hyun-man, and Hong Seong-min, a three-time national sports festival winner, beat former Tongyang super lightweight champion Kim Min-wook to survive, producing tense matches among the top fighters that sent shivers through the audience.
The broadcast recorded an average nationwide household rating of 2.2% and a peak of 2.6%. In the Seoul metropolitan area it recorded an average of 2.5% and a peak of 3.2%, ranking first among cable and general programming channels in the same time slot. The tvN target demographic of men and women 20-49 ranked first among cable and general programming channels in both nationwide and the Seoul metropolitan area. (Based on paid platforms combining cable, IPTV and satellite / provided by Nielsen Korea)
First, in the cage ring matches between Kim Tae-seon and Lee Sang-geun, Lee Dae-young and Kim Hyun-jun, Lim Yun-chan and Nam Min-woo, and Moon Ji-hyeok and Kwon Oh-gon, Lee Sang-geun, Kim Hyun-jun, Lim Yun-chan and Kwon Oh-gon survived. In the tag ring match, the team of Lee Ki-jun and Kim Min-woo faced the team of Kim Heon-su and Lee Joo-young and claimed victory. Eliminated contestant Lee Joo-young confessed to financial hardships and a boxing slump and said, "I struggled a lot with whether I should continue (boxing), but I want to do it," prompting the participants to respond with warm applause.
Afterward, the tag ring match between Go Yo-han and Kim Dong-eon team and Park Young-ho and Shin Dong-hyun team closed out the round. In particular, Dex affectionately dubbed Kim Dong-eon of Gyeongnam Sports High School boxing team "Dong-eon mom." Kim Dong-eon showed spirited, assertive play against Shin Dong-hyun, the first Korean contracted fighter of ONE Championship, and Park Young-ho, who was 26 kg heavier, without shrinking back. Although Go Yo-han and Kim Dong-eon's team lost to Park Young-ho and Shin Dong-hyun's team due to their strategic match management, Kim Dong-eon's performance left a strong impression.
Meanwhile, "Sniper" Kim Min-wook intensified focus by facing "Tyson" Hong Seong-min, one of the contenders he considered for 'I AM BOXER' victory, in the aqua ring. Kim Min-wook closely watched Hong Seong-min's movements and demonstrated the class of a master, and Hong Seong-min, not yielding to his opponent's experience, responded, producing a brilliant match that drew admiration and resulted in Hong Seong-min surviving.
The cage ring match between high-level boxer Kim Dong-hoe and one-punch threat Myung Hyun-man was brutality itself. From the start, Myung Hyun-man pressed with overwhelming power and dirty boxing tactics that neutralized his opponent's primary weapons. Kim Dong-hoe, finding windows to attack when separated from his opponent, drew admiration with agility and precision befitting a "boxing demon" and ultimately claimed victory. With this, 15 survivors were confirmed through the third fight.
Ma Dong-seok, Kim Jong-kook and Dex greeted each eliminated contestant one by one and expressed their gratitude. Myung Hyun-man said, "After I retired as a fighter and lived only as the head of my household, coming on 'I AM BOXER' and trading blows with the boxers, I felt like the boxer who used to appear on television... I felt rewarded to become that kind of boxer again," he said. Kim Min-wook, who has boxed for 26 years, said, "I was able to reveal myself like this again, so I was very pleased, I enjoyed it, and I was happy."
At the end of the broadcast, Ma Dong-seok and Dex gifted gloves and the sandbags used in the 6 on 6 punch race to students of the Seoul Sports High School boxing team. Their friendly conversation with the students who will carry the future of K-boxing, along with signing autographs and filming video messages, added warmth to the scene.
The boxers' survival game will continue on tvN 'I AM BOXER', which airs every Friday at 11 p.m., and the June 26 episode will raise expectations by previewing the appearance of world champion Dmitry Bivol.
[Photo] tvN 'I AM BOXER' video capture
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