Review: K-1 World GP 2006 in Tokyo
3rd December 2006
More than fifty thousand people had gathered in the Tokyo Dome on December 2 to see the finals in the K-1 World GP 2006. A noisy arena, but the cheapest tickets for 4000 yen give a nice view from the gallery. They always have the same female announcer at the K1 here in Tokyo and her high pitched voice is not the highlight of the event. Still, I had a very good view of the big screen and it’s allowed to bring your own beer inside. Now, review of the fights:
Peter Aerts vs. MUSASHI
Veteran Peter Aerts never gave MUSASHI a chance. KO in round one by the lumberjack. See the video here.
Jerome Le Banner vs. Semmy Schilt
Frenchman JLB lost to Semmy Schilt and was out. I thought he would do better after beating the Korean giant Hong-Man Choi last time. Schilt is a big guy with his 211 centimetres (6′11″) and I think that is how he in the end won this fight as well as the whole thing. His fighting sure is efficient but not very entertaining. Shorter Le Banner tried to get in close and Schilt wanted to keep him from doing it. Video of this fight here.
“Schilt and formidable French kickboxer Jerome LeBanner went head to head in the first tournament matchup. From the bell, Schilt controlled the distance with low and front kicks, while LeBanner strove to get inside with the fists. The Frenchman scored from the clinch with a right hook, and blocked well when Schilt attempted knees and high kicks.”
Ernesto Hoost vs. Chalid “Die Faust” Arrab
Hoost, “Mr Perfect” managed to win after an extra round. OK, he won this match, but after seeing him fight it was obvious that he couldn’t win the whole GP. There was to much tripping and falling on his part. He should have retired before this tournament. Video of the extra round here.
“A cool Hoost moved forward with tight combinations in the second, but Die Faust blocked ably and answered the challenges with punches, and there were some satisfying exchanges here and in the third. Hoost showed good stamina, taking the fight to his opponent, scoring late with combinations, low kicks and punch combinations. When the pair went to the clinch, Hoost pumped in the knees while Die Faust brought uppercuts. One judge gave it to Hoost but the others saw a draw so the bout went to an extra round.”
Glaube Feitosa vs. Ruslan Karaev
The Russian looked tough and started very aggressively against Feitosa. Schooled in Kyokushin karate where punches are not allowed to the head Feitosa is using the Kyokushin speciality of knocking out his opponent with a round kick. This only works if the timing is exact. The kick must just come out of nowhere. Feitosa is using what is called a “brazilian kick”, a round kick so high that it literally comes from an above angel. If Glaube Feitosa has a secret technique then this is the one. KO in round one. The Russian was devastated and cried on his way out after the KO by head kick. Video of this fight here.
“Karaev charged in from the bell with an all-out punch and kick attack, intent on overpowering his opponent. But Feitosa kept his guard up and weathered the storm, then coolly came in with a left high kick that caught Karaev hard on the side of the head. The Brazilian did not relent, following up quickly with punches to force a standing count. The referee took a good look at the stunned Karaev, then waved his arms to stop the bout, putting Feitosa through to the semis.”
Remy Bonjasky vs. Stefan Leko
This was the scandal fight. A few seconds into the match Bonjasky was kicked in the groin and in great pain. It looked like an accident on Leko’s part. How can this happen? Don’t they wear groin protection? The fight was stopped to resume later and instead we got a Super fight so they would give Bonjasky time to rest. Unfortunately for him, the extra fight was quickly over:
Ray Sefo vs. Melvin Manhoef
This fight was thrown in to give Bonjasky time to rest. Well, Sefo won by KO after 20 seconds in round one. So much for that! Video of the fight here.
By now it felt like like the whole event was getting out of hand. Having 50 000 people sitting waiting watching a pause video with clouds is not good for business. This is supposed to be the number one martial art event in the world and at this point I didn’t think that we had got our moneys worth.
The match went on and Bonjasky got a second kick in the groin! Another accident when he blocked a spinning kick by lifting up his leg, but sure looked nasty. In spite of this, Bonjasky won the fight. This without any flying knee or other spectacular techniques. I felt cheated on this match. I really wanted to see Bonjasky fight and do his thing, and as things played out I didn’t get that feeling. Video of the fight here.
“In the fast-paced second Bonjasky kept his guard close and high, peppering his opponent with low kicks and getting up with an expert knee, while Leko threaded the guard with a right uppercut. Leko had a hard time getting the punches past in the third, and Bonjasky used the legs well before showing great timing to come in with a tight right hook to score a down. A unanimous decision for Bonjasky.”
Sem Schilt vs Ernesto Hoost
Now we are getting somewhere! This was all or nothing for Hoost, going up against the ruling champ Schilt. He did a lot better than the first fight and proved to be a solid and very experienced fighter. Hoost put up an impressive defence against the bigger Schilt. Much better balance and hit Schilt hard, but it wasn’t enough to win.
“Schilt’s long reach was the difference in the third, as he was able to launch several successful lefts then follow with a knee and close with body blows. Hoost tried till the end to find a way to hurt Schilt, but to no avail. If Hoost was to lose his last bout, there was no shame in doing so to the powerhouse that is Schilt.”
Glaube Feitosa vs Peter Aerts
(Bonjaski is injured and can’t fight, his replacement will be PETER AERTS)
Peter Aerts saved the day at this event. This is one veteran who don’t need to retire! K-1 is about giving a good fight and a good show and Aerts delivers on both accounts. After winning 84 fights Aerts has got this down to an exact science so much that he could probably win a fight with his eyes closed. Glaube Feitosa tried his high kicks with Aerts to no success. The secret technique of Peter Aerts is durability. He can take a beating. Just watch some high light clips and you will see that it takes more than one blow to knock out Aerts. None of the fighters in the GP this year can throw a high kick like Feitosa. Aerts took booth a round kick and a drop kick to the head without getting downed. In the end Feitosa fell to Aerts solid and technical style where it’s all about take opportunity to what is available.
“Feitosa connected with a hard high kick to rattle Aerts in the first, and made partial contact soon afterward with an axe kick. Aerts however reversed spectacularly in the second, chasing Feitosa with fists, stunning him with a right and a left then bringing up the knee. A devastating right hook put the Brazilian down hard, prompting a referee stop. Aerts sprightly jogged out of the ring, looking to be in great shape for his date with Schilt.”
Superfight: Badr Hari vs Paul Slowinski
I think this was planned as the “odd” fight putting bad boy Hari in the ring. Known for taking the fight outside the ropes Hari did a nice and clean fight with a only a few spectacular techniques. A bit surprising that fighters like this can put on an as good if not better show than the big names.
SEMMY SCHILT vs PETER AERTS
Schilt is younger and taller than Aerts and that made him a winner here. Frankly I think Schilt’s fighting style is not very entertaining to watch. He is a thorough and careful fighter that don’t take any unnecessary chances. And with his size he can afford it. Still this was a nail biter. Aerts was down in the second round and that is never a good sign. If a fighter has been down it is hard for them to get back in shape and win. Schilt won using his size and knees but Aerts gave everything. This was about more than the 400,000 dollar check. Video of the fight here.
“Midway though the second, however, Schilt charged in with kicks and knees to score a down. Aerts appeared fine after the count, and the never-say-die fighter had moments of his own in the round, charging with a right and left straight punch combination that made partial contact and put Schilt on the ropes. In the third The Lumberjack pumped in more low kicks, including one that caught Schilt across the back of the thigh and very nearly felled him. Aerts added some straight punches, but could he not put the hurt on Schilt. For his part, Schilt was always strong with the fists, stymieing Aerts’ attempts to get inside. When the distance did close, Schilt had the big knees at the ready. Aerts was tired and a little wobbly by the end of this one, which went to Schilt by unanimous decision.“
Quotes from “Fans of K-1″ review here
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