SEOUL, June 3, 2006 -- Hong Man Choi upset Semmy Schilt in a Superfight and Yusuke Fujimoto beat three challengers to win the Asia Grand Prix tournament today at the K-1 World GP in Seoul.
Future K-1 Stars
K-1 is big in Korea, and tonight's headline bout was the talk of Seoul in the days leading up to the event. And why not? The showdown between K-1's biggest fighters -- Defending World GP Champion Semmy Schilt of Holland (212cm/6'11";134kg/295lbs) and Defending Asia GP Champion Hong Man Choi (218cm/7'2";163kg/360lbs), was a veritable clash of the titans.
Hong Man Choi vs. Semmy Schilt
Choi is a superstar in his native Korea, and the atmosphere was electric as the bell sounded to start the first. Choi got a right through early and scored with a 1-2-3 combination, otherwise coolly answering Schilt's repeated low kicks with the jab. Schilt got the fists up more to start the second, and Choi was bleeding from above the left eye by the midpoint of the round, prompting a doctor stop, prompting the crowd to perform the wave with zeal. After resumption, Choi again stepped in with combinations, but Schilt blocked to stay out of trouble, throwing a dangerous high kick that Choi stopped. At the clapper Choi put Schilt on the run with straight punches, catching him off-balance with a good left then firing in a few more blows to cause Schilt to turn away. Probably the best sustained pressure of the bout, Choi aggressive right up to the bell.
In the third Schilt went with low kicks, but Choi was not bothered by these. The fight slowed somewhat here before Choi brought another left straight punch, Schilt answering in kind. A close contest, the cards giving it to Choi by the narrowest of split decisions.
Hong Man Choi, the Superfight winner
"I feel great," said Choi afterward, "I am very happy with the win and with all the support I have here -- a big group of students from my old university in Busan even came down to cheer for me! I wanted to use my knees and try some other techniques, but Semmy is too big. He got me with his low kicks and my legs hurt, but they were not seriously damaged. My face was damaged, but that's ok!"
Schilt used his post-bout interview to ask for a rematch.
A second Superfight pitted the explosive kickboxer Ruslan Karaev of Russia against K-1 veteran slugger Ray Sefo of New Zealand.
Sefo knocked Karaev out in just 37 seconds the last time the pair met, and joked at the pre-event press conference that he might try and improve on that -- getting the KO in ten seconds this time.
Ruslan Karaev vs. Ray Sefo
Karaev looked strong from the start, moving in quickly with three high kicks. Sefo countered with punches but Karaev did not back down, turning a couple of good spinning back kicks that surprised Sefo but landed off the mark. The two are good friends outside the ring, but clearly tonight they had come to fight, and neither showed any mercy. Working from in close, Karaev brought the knee up smartly, but Sefo delivered a surprise of his own, a vicious right hook that caught the Russian cross the lip, cocking his head abruptly and sending him down hard. And there he stayed.
Ruslan Karaev vs. Ray Sefo
A tremendous display of power and fighting smarts from Sefo, who needed just 1:42 -- scarcely a minute longer than last time he fought Karaev -- to notch the KO win.
"I'm happy," said Sefo afterward, "and now my goal is to go to the Tokyo Dome Final!"
The evening's third Superfight featured a couple of kickboxers -- veteran Peter Aerts of Holland, a three-time WGP Champion, and a fighter 12 years his junior, Hiraku Hori of Japan.
A spirited start with Hori firing low kicks and stepping forward with the punches, Aerts blocking well and answering with hard low kicks of his own. The best strike of the first round was an Aerts right straight punch that rattled Hori. Aerts got the right working again in the second for a down, and now Hori was desperate just to hang on. Aerts pumped a right hook round the closed-up Hori to score a second down seconds later, and after resumption finished off his opponent with a potent left high kick to the side of the head. Hori had to be carried out of the ring. So much for all the talk of Aerts nearing retirement age -- here he looked like a fighter in his prime.
Peter Aerts vs. Hiraku Hori
"Hori is good," said Aerts post-bout, "but he became passive so I took my chance to get aggressive and it worked!"
In the Asia GP 06 Tournament:
The first bout saw Japanese Karate stylist Yusuke Fujimoto take on former Sumo wrestler Dong Wook Kim of Korea.
Fujimoto has experience against top K-1 fighters (most recently Gary Goodridge and Carter Williams); while Kim was making his K-1 debut here. The hulking Korean brought a substantial size advantage to the ring -- he stands 17cm/7"taller and weighs a full 67kg/147lbs more than Fujimoto.
Dong Wook Kim vs. Yusuke Fujimoto
Alas, a lackluster affair. Neither fighter committed much during the first round, Fujimoto testing with several low kicks, Kim nonchalantly answering with the right punch. It was more of the same in the second, although Fujimoto connected with a couple of punches here. In the third Fujimoto was better with his fists, putting up enough points overall to take a win by decision and advance to the semifinals.
In the second bout, it was Thai wunderkind Kaoklai Kaennorsing and Japanese Karate fighter Tsuyoshi Nakasako. These are a couple of fellows fallen on tough times, both winless in their previous three bouts. Kaoklai fired the kicks in from the start, controlling the distance well with front kicks and showing superior evasions, blocking and counters. But Nakasako's blocking was also sound, and early in the second the Japanese fighter stunned his opponent with a tight right hook to record a down. A livelier Kaoklai strived to get punches through in the third, but too often resorted to clinching when the pair got close. A high kick bounced off Nakasako's head at the clapper, but Kaoklai could not get the down he needed to equalize, and the win went to Nakasako.
Tsuyoshi Nakasako vs. Kaoklai Kaennorsing
Muay Thai fighter Mourad Bouzidi of Holland met Iranian boxer Mehdi Mirdavoudi in the third of the quarterfinal matchups.
Mourad Bouzidi vs. Mehdi Mirdavoudi
Although the youngest fighter in the tournament at just 21, Bouzidi spent two years under the tutelage of Peter Aerts, and looked a confident combatant here. From the bell Mirdavoudi charged in with the fists, but Bouzidi's defenses were sound and he commenced to laying in with the low kicks and knees. A Bouzidi high kick made partial contact midway through the first, and by the end of the round Mirdavoudi looked to be tiring. In the second Mirdavoudi remained almost motionless, but the dancing Bouzidi could not bring the hurt to his opponent. Both men were cautioned for holding here. The third saw Bouzidi put a decent high kick up again, and get through with a flying fist attack, but neither of these were power strikes. Still, Bouzidi had been easily the more aggressive man in the ring, and so picked up the win.
Min Soo Kim, a Korean fighter who has brought a Judo background to mixed martial arts, encountered compatriot Kyoung Suk Kim, a former Sumo wrestler making his K-1 debut, in the last of the first-tier contests.
At 180kg/397lbs, Kyoung Suk was the biggest boy in the tournament, and started right in with an attempt at a spinning back kick, which, comically, missed big. Kyoung Suk did better later, chasing his opponent down with punches. In the second, Kyoung Suk barreled in on Min Soo, who answered with a clinch, arms round the waist, face buried in blubber. This Kyoung Suk dealt with by King-Kong-pummeling on the back of Min Soo's head. But Min Soo kept on coming, although Kyoung Suk showed some skill in keeping him outside. In the third when Min Soo did get close, Kyoung Suk pushed him down and leapt atop him, which is not allowed under K-1 Rules. After Min Soo made partial contact with a high kick and fell, Kyoung Suk poised to stomp, stopping only at the last second. Oops, that's not in the rules either. Kyoung Suk got a one-point deduction for his unsportsmanlike behavior.
Kyoung Suk Kim vs. Min Soo Kim
There was not a lot of grace in this dance, but it was entertaining. Min Soo, having evidenced the more conventional attacks, got the decision over his penalized opponent.
The first of the semifinals coupled Fujimoto and Nakasako. Boom boom and Fujimoto was forward with the fists to the head and body. But Nakasako weathered the attack well and stayed with Fujimoto through the balance of the round. The second saw Fujimoto with his guard high, picking his spots, pressing well with the combinations. Nakasako meanwhile looked tentative, unsure how to get at his opponent. A strange occurrence in the third when Fujimoto, moving forward with his head down, ended up locomoting the off-balance Nakasako backward quickly across the ring and hard into the corner post. A yellow card for Fujimoto. After resumption the two mixed it up more, Nakasako making partial contact with a high kick, Fujimoto back better with the hard low kicks. A solid effort earning Fujimoto a majority decision and a trip to the final.
Tsuyoshi Nakasako vs. Yusuke Fujimoto
It was Bouzidi and Kim in the second semi. Kim mounted a surprisingly aggressive start here, charging in fast with punches from the bell. The Korean got a left through during an early exchange and Bouzidi went to the canvas -- the referee called it a slip but the crowd wasn't convinced. The round stayed fast, Kim pressing, Bouzidi good with the low kicks but unable to put a lot of power across with the fists. There was plenty of action in the second, Bouzidi scoring a down with a low kick that saw Kim turn away in pain. Later, Kim got the Dutchman against the ropes and threw in the fists but couldn't get a down.
Min Soo Kim vs. Mourad Bouzidi
Bouzidi went with the low kicks in the third, and judging by his wincing, Kim's leg was smarting something serious. But suddenly the Korean's left fist found Bouzidi's face for a down, and the partisan crowd leapt to their feet in rapture. On pure adrenaline now, Kim was back in it, and both men gave the fight an exciting finish. Judges called it a draw and so the bout went to an extra round.
The fighters pressed in the tiebreaker, Kim punching, crouched forward to keep his legs out of harm's way, Bouzidi technical but missing with his high kicks. Approaching the midway point, Bouzidi put in the mother of all low blows, and the look on Kim's face said it hurt all the way to Busan. For a long while it appeared Kim would be unable to continue, but spurred on by the crowd and with Herculean resolve, he recomposed and the bout resumed. The pair flailed all over each other for the remainder -- it wasn't pretty but it was real. Kim simply outworked his opponent, finishing strongly to pick up the win and a trip to the final.
In the final, Fujimoto and Kim spent most of the first trying the distance. Kim then came in strongly with his fists, keen to slug it out, but Fujimoto stayed outside and began to worked the low kicks. This proved a sound strategy, as Kim's right leg was in miserable condition. Fujimoto escaped one last, valiant punching attack from Kim before stinging him twice with low kicks, and now it was only a matter of time. To his credit, the limping Kim made it out of the round. Early in the second, Fujimoto set up with a kick, then followed in with a right to daze his opponent. A left and then another right and Kim was on the mat and Fujimoto had the tournament victory -- the first-ever for a Japanese fighter in a World Grand Prix Series tournament outside Japan.
Min Soo Kim vs. Yusuke Fujimoto
With his win, Fujimoto advances to the K-1 World GP Final Elimination at the Osaka Dome this September.
"I am happy to win, the last fight against Min Soo Kim was much harder than I expected, I thought he would be tired but he had a lot of power. I took some punches and I knew that if one hit me the wrong way I would be in big trouble, so I hit him with low kicks. He made a great fight, I respect the Korean spirit he showed!"
In the tournament Reserve Fight, Myeon Ju Lee Republic of Korea got a kick up to the chin to score a second round KO win against Kai Li of China. In an undercard bout, Yong Soo Park Republic of Korea dispatched Japanese fighter Rikijyo by first-round KO.
Olympic Complex
The K-1 Asia GP '06 attracted a sellout crowd of 14,880 to the Seoul Olympic Complex. It was broadcast live on MBC and MBC/ESPN in South Korea and on the Fuji Television Network and Fuji Satellite TV in Japan. The event will be time-delay broadcast on EuroSport across Europe, ProTV in Romania, inDemand in the United States, Viewers' Choice in Canada and GroboSat in Brazil. The K-1 Asia GP '06 will be seen in over 100 countries, please check with local broadcasters for scheduling details.
As always, visit the K-1 Official Website (www.k-1.co.jp) for complete World Grand Prix coverage.
