The K-1 World Grand Prix 2006 came to us on the 2nd of December, and from the outset, looked marvelous.First thing I can say is OOOOOH.. The staging is far superior to anything that I’ve ever seen; including the years upon years of WWE ppvs, the wonderful PRIDE shows, and the earlier UFC programmes. The stage resembles a greek temple, with the fighters emerging from the centre, passing four girls that are dressed as greek priestesses, by the looks. Nice.
One of the thickest and best K-1 cards that I’ve ever seen, this is sure to be a fiery night of fights.
So far, the fight of the night HAS to be the Musashi vs Peter Aerts bout. Total domination is perhaps not a strong enough phrase to describe the numerous hard shots that Musashi took over the bout’s meager 1 round.
Aerts then went on to beat Glaube Feitosa by TKO in the 2nd round, after a wonderful flurry and beautiful boxing. He was not even meant to be in the tournament, but after (presumably) Remy Bojansky took one of the hardest spinning back kicks to the testicles that there has ever been, it looks like Aerts is replacing him. At this point, I’m wondering if I put a dollar on someone who wasn’t even scheduled to be in the tournament, I’d be rich.
He will meet Semmy Schilt in the finals, after Schilt beat 2 legends of K-1 in one night; first, Jerome LeBanner, then later, “Mr Perfect” Ernesto Hoost, a fighter who is held in high regard by not only the kickboxing, but by the entire MMA community.
However, Schilt, to me, is the Tim Sylvia of the K-1 world. He just seems to knock decisions out left, right and centre, rather than fights with decisive finishes. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that he’s a bad fighter; I just find his style rather boring. He relies almost totally on his reach, which you cannot blame him for, but his style does not make for enthralling fights.
Most annoying thing about the show? The female commentator. Since my Japanese skills are somewhat (read: completely) limited to a few simple phrases, it’s annoying that I understand almost everything she says; literally, the word “hai”, meaning “yes”, has never been repeated quite so many times.
Poul Souwinski vs Baor Hari (Battle of the strange names) saw a few nice shots but nothing career-changing in the first round, the second saw Hari go ahead on points with a beautiful right hand, presumably one of the many shots that led to him winning the fight on a decision.
The final saw Semmy Schilt vs Peter Aerts, in a match that once again went the descision. I’ll give Schilt his due, as it was a fairly even fight. His kickboxing is fairly good, and his 7 foot frame allows for a better reach against his much smaller opponent. Schilt went on to win by decision in a match where I thought Aerts had the upper hand; the giant landed a few flurries in the first round, but I would have definitely given rounds 2 and 3 to the K-1 Veteran.
Overall, the show was good. Peter Aerts shone throughout, and although Schilt won the final, Aert’s place in the hearts of kickboxing fans as a true legend was strengthened further. If you can watch the show and like a good knockout, go for it, even if it’s just for Aerts vs Musashi. If you can’t, don’t lose any sleep over it, especially the outcome.
1 comments: on "A Legend Shows His Colours..."
Peter Aerts was supposed to be in the Final Elimination match held in September,but he couldn't compete due to a virus infection.
At that same Final Elimination Ernesto Hoost was scheduled to meet Bob Sapp(that Bob Sapp),but Sapp didn't show up.
So it ended up with Hoost taking Aerts place there.
That Aerts went on to go to the Final due to Remy Bonjasky unfortunate injury,is something that must have been faith.
But having another fighter from my home country is really cool.
And it just proves that the greatest fighters in the K-1 come from the Netherlands.
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