The K-1 World Grand Prix 2008 event in Yokohama, Japan on Monday night (NZT) saw the return of Mark Hunt to kickboxing’s main stage, as well as the ageing Ray Sefo.
But it wasn’t happy night for either of the Samoan kickboxing legends. Hunt faced current K-1 super heavyweight world champion Semmy Schilt and despite coming out strong unleashing some round houses at his much taller opponent, the 6’11” tall Dutch giant held his nerve and began unleashing his lethal leg kicks which slowed down the Samoan brawler.
Hurt by repeated low kicks, Hunt was finished off by a Schilt spinning back kick that smacked right into his midsection – a kick he never saw coming. Slumping to the ground, the fight was over just before the end of the first round. It was a rare KO loss for the granite chinned Hunt.
"I felt like I'd been kicked by a horse," said a distressed Hunt, "I think anybody who got caught with that kick, even Ernesto Hoost would have been out. I only started getting my air back when I heard the ring announcer call the number 'eight'."
Hunt was back for this K-1 event after a five year absence fighting in the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) scene, with the Japan based PRIDE organisation. He turned his back on K-1 the following year after winning the K-1 World Championship belt in 2001, New Zealand’s best ever result in the sport and a feat which catapulted the south Auckland raised brawler to stardom.
It had been more than six years since Mark Hunt's incredible 2001 World GP Tokyo Dome Final performance, when the New Zealand boxer dispatched K-1 stars Francisco Filho, Stefan Leko and Jerome LeBanner to become the first non-European K-1 World GP Champion.
The news wasn’t any better for veteran Ray Sefo, still pursuing that elusive K-1 World title. He is the best kick boxer in K-1 never to have won the crown. And it appears he may never get there after being knocked out by trash talking Moroccan and Defending K-1 Heavyweight Champion Badr Hari. The lanky 6’4’ tall 23 year-old scored three quick first-round downs to defeat Sefo. Sefo was expected to overpower his younger opponent but a knee to the head in the early exchanges, changed the course of the fight.
In an explosive start -- both fighters attacking aggressively, Sefo firing in a right that put his opponent off balance, Hari responding with a number of knees then a devastating left cross to score a down. After resumption, Hari went right after Sefo, who was forced to the ropes, closed up in defense. Sefo has a great chin, but Hari brought up a hard knee then added a right straight to score another down.
Hari showed no mercy, firing one punch after another, and again bringing the knee up on the doubled-over Sefo. The crowd watched nervously, well aware that Sefo had many times before taken a beating, only to rebound, and return the favour. But on this night, "Sugarfoot" could not sustain a counterattack. As Hari's fists flew, the referee stepped in and waved his arms, signalling a sensational first-round KO victory for Badr Hari.
"Before the fight, I said I'd get a KO, and I delivered!" said Hari afterward. "In the ring, you can't miss anything, but Ray blinked and I landed the blow, and that was that."
"I was feeling okay," said Sefo, "and then I got caught by the knee and it all went down from there. Badr was the better fighter, that's all."
The Yokohama card comprised nine bouts, all fought under regular K-1 Rules.
The other Polynesian on the car was American champion, Mighty Mo Siala Siliga, who was up against cocky Japanese kickboxer Keijiro Maeda. At the age of 34, the Samoan is 13 years older than Maeda, and that showed as Maeda frustrated Mo with his kick and run tactics, scoring the points and staying clear of Mo’s thunderous right hook. Maeda won easily on points.
The K-1 World Grand Prix culminates in the grand final event on Tokyo at the end of the year which sees the best fighters throughout the year, and last year’s qualifiers face off for the grand prize, won only once before by a fight from the Pacific Oceania region.
FieLDS K-1 WORLD GP 2008 IN YOKOHAMA
Date: Sunday, April 13, 2008, Gate Open 2:00PM / Event Starts 3:00PM
Venue: YOKOHAMA ARENA, Kanagawa, JAPAN
Attendance: 10,629 people
Semmy Schilt, Holland / Seido Kaikan VS Mark Hunt, New Zealand / Oceania Super Fighter Gym
WINNER: Semmy Schilt (1R 3'06 KO)
Ewerton Teixeira, Brazil / Kyokushin Kaikan VS Yusuke Fujimoto, Japan / MONSTER FACTORY
WINNER: Ewerton Teixeira (Ext.2R 2'01" KO)
Musashi, Japan / Seido Kaikan VS Junichi Sawayashiki, Japan / Team Dragon
WINNER: Musashi (2R 2'16" KO)
Ray Sefo, New Zealand / Ray Sefo Fight Academy VS Badr Hari, Morocco / Show Time
WINNER: Badr Hari (1R 2'43" KO)
Glaube Feitosa, Brazil / Kyokushin Kaikan VS Alex Roberts, U.S.A. / SHOOT BOXING Kujyuken-kaikan
WINNER: Glaube Feitosa (2R 1'58" KO)
Mighty Mo, U.S.A. / Freelance VS Keijiro Maeda, Japan / Team Dragon
WINNER: Keijiro Maeda (Ext.R Decision 3-0)
Petr Vondracek, Czech Republic / Bacardi VS Mitsugu Noda, Japan / Silver Ax
WINNER: Mitsugu Noda (2R 2'43" KO)
Chalid "Die Faust", Germany / Golden Glory VS Aleksandr Pichkunov, Russia / Kyokushin Kaikan
WINNER: Aleksandr Pichkunov (Ext.2R Decision 2-1)
Takashi Tachikawa, Japan / TRYOUT VS Hiroyuki Enokida, Japan / Seido Kaikan
WINNER: Hiroyuki Enokida (1R 0'40" KO)
Tsuyoshi Nakasako, Japan / ZEBRA 244 VS Takumi Sato, Japan / Kyokushin Kaikan
WINNER: Tsuyoshi Nakasako (3R Decision 3-0)
Kyoung Suk Kim, Republic of Korea / Freelance VS Tsutomu Takahagi, Japan / Team Doragon
WINNER: Tsutomu Takahagi (2R 0'18" KO)
K-1 World Grand Prix Champions
| YEAR | CHAMPION | RUNNER-UP |
| 1993 | Branko Cikatic | Ernesto Hoost |
| 1994 | Peter Aerts | Masaaki Satake |
| 1995 | Peter Aerts | Jerome Le Banner |
| 1996 | Andy Hug | Mike Bernardo |
| 1997 | Ernesto Hoost | Andy Hug |
| 1998 | Peter Aerts | Andy Hug |
| 1999 | Ernesto Hoost | Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic |
| 2000 | Ernesto Hoost | Ray Sefo |
| 2001 | Mark Hunt | Francisco Filho |
| 2002 | Ernesto Hoost | Jerome Le Banner |
| 2003 | Remy Bojasky | Musashi |
| 2004 | Remy Bojasky | Musashi |
| 2005 | Semmy Schilt | Glaube Feitosa |
| 2006 | Semmy Schilt | Peter Aerts |
| 2007 | Semmy Schilt | Peter Aerts |
