2017 ROAD FC AWARDS CEREMONY WINNERS

ROAD Fighting Championship's final event of the year, Xiaomi ROAD FC 045 XX, took place in Seoul, South Korea on December 23, 2017. Atomweight Champion Ham Seo-Hee retained her belt and her position as the world's top in the division by a fist round TKO over Jinh Yu Frey.

Tickets for the all-VIP event sold out in 1 day. Following it, the 2017 ROAD FC Awards Ceremony was held. It was the first time a year end awards ceremony had been held in conjunction with an event, and the first time to be aired live on television, on MBC Sports+. Incoming CEO Kim Dae-Hwan was formally introduced after Founder Jung Mun-Hong had stepped down from the position on November 29th.

Here are the winners of this year's awards, as compiled by ROAD FC staff and voted upon by ROAD FC fans.

Hall Of Fame ROADMAN

ROAD FC has become a leading mixed martial arts promotion in Asia. At the center of this development has been Jung Mun-Hong. He has made the impossible possible by investing both his money and personal time to the cause. In 2017, ROAD FC returned to China, expanded its broadcast, created a new reality television series “Fearless Guys” with MBC, and launched the first all-female MMA league in Korea. Mr. Jung also directed the company's community outreach programs through the “Love Sharing Project” which involved blood drives, charcoal for impoverished homes, and donation drives for pediatric cancer. For this reason, he has been presented with the first award in the Hall of Fame, ROADMAN, for his outstanding contributions to the company.

A second ROADMAN award was presented to GNFOOD President Hong Kyung-Ho for his continual outstanding contributions to ROAD FC. GNFOODS, the parent company of Goobne Chicken, has been the most committed and long-standing sponsor of ROAD FC, and has activated partnerships that have increased ROAD FC visibility and community standing.

Teams of the Year: Team Poma and Team Strong Wolf

Both teams are winners of this years; Team of the Year award, because both teams brought a great deal of action to the ROAD FC cage in 2017. Team Poma sent many seasoned competitors in 2017 including Min Kyung-Chul, Kim Woo-Jae and Cho Byung-Hwi, as well as fielding several new professional fighters and countless amateurs. Team Strong Wolf had a breakout year in 2017 with the success of many new fighters, including Park Jung-Eun, Lim Dong-Hwan, and Kim Yi-Sack.

Female Rookie of the Year: Yoshiko

Nominees: Shim Yoo-Ri, Yoshiko, Kang Jin-Hee

The Female Rookie of the Year is Yoshiko, who came fresh off a notorious professional wrestling career to make her MMA debut, which she did with an earth-shattering KO. Yoshiko competed three times under the ROAD FC banner in 2017 with a much improved performance in her rematch with Chun Sun-Yoo, and her first loss on the same night of the awards event. Therefore, it was an emotional acceptance by the young wrestler.

Male Rookie of the Year: Shin Dong-Guk

Nominees: Rafael Fiziev, Hwang In-Su, Shin Dong-Guk

Male Rookie of the Year saw three very distinct fighters earn the nomination, with Firefighter Shin Dong-Guk taking the win. Shin fought in the amateur leagues first, then made his pro debut at ROAD FC 038 with a 53 second KO. He followed up the performance with a 78 second KO in front of his hometown crowd at the Chungju World Martial Arts Festival event. Shin was not able to be at the awards ceremony as he was on call for a massive fire in the neighboring city of Jaechun.

KO of the Year: Myung Hyun-Man

Nominees: Amartuvshin Khuukhenkhuu, Myung Hyun-Man, Tom Santos

There were quite a few contenders for KO of the year in 2017, and it was Myung Hyun-Man's faceplanting KO of Chris Barnett at ROAD FC 041 that took home the win. After their first contest which unfortunately ended by injury, and a follow up viral groin kick of Aorigele, Myung made his final appearance in 2017 a memorable one.

Fan Favorite of the Year: Aorigele

Nominees: Lee Je-Ji, Chris Barnett, Yoshiko, Aorigele

There are so many fighters who could be nominated for Fan Favorite of the Year, but the one who stood out was Aorigele. With his antics both inside and outside the cage, his constant friendly interaction with his fans, and his social media blitz, Aorigele became the clear winner for the world-wide fans.

Fighter of the Year: Kim Soo-Chul

Nominees: Kim Soo-Chul, Moon Jea-Hoon, Mansour Barnaoui

Again, there were so many impressive performances in ROAD FC in 2017, so it was difficult to make up a shortlist of nominees. Kim Soo-Chul's emotional ROAD FC Bantamweight title win, which came after years of toiling against strong international opponents, earned him the highest respect from the fans. Upon accepting his award, Kim announced that he would be retiring from the sport, having accomplished all he'd originally intended to. ROAD FC wishes him a restful time, but does hope to see such a talented fighter return to the cage again one day.