My thoughts on the Amsterdam show

[Lord Gaul]

Well I finally got to see my first live K-1 show and to say the least it is the best event I have ever been to. The music was loud, the entrances were great and there were alot of statements made tonight.

The tournament was great with the exception that I thought Zabit clearly won the final. Zimmerman didn't score won point in the last round. The fight of the night was Zimmerman/Bregy. After giving up round one he came back to score a KD in round two. Bregy started playing and Zimmerman was all over him when it happened. Then in the third Bregy landed a freak spinning back fist while he was on the retreat. He followed it and scored a down to put himself back up. At that point I looked at Jofeljah and said well atleast he came back. He then cuaght fire and chased breggy down to score to more KD and get the win.

Tyrone Spong is amazing. I have been saying for ever that he is the pound for poud best in the world and tonight he moved up to 90kgs and absolutly destroyed Azem. He would have finished it in the 1st if rounds were 3:01 instead of 3:00. He doesn't even take real rest, he will be back in the gym on Monday and I will be training with him on tuesday. He said at the press confrence that he wants to win the WGP before he takes time off. He is undersized, but he has all the tools to do it. He is the best figher I have ever seen.

Remy vs Melvin was to awesome for wards. Melvins entrance was amazing and it got the whole crowd hype. He was game throughout, but Remy was better throughout, scoring 2 downs in the 1st and 3rd and one in the second. On the first down he scored in the second, the kick knocked teath out of Melvins mouth, the finishing kick was Vernan White reviseted. He jumped up and caught Melvin flush. Afterwards Melvin said loosing teeth didn't matter as long as he got to preform for Holland.

Watching Buakaw fight was indeed a treat. I see why Yodsenklai wants to fight him so bad, because he got the loudest obvation of all the fighters there. He was matched with a good tough fighter, but when Buakaw is fighting anyone not named Souwer or Masato there game plan seems to got out the window. He is super fast and his counters are crisp. It was a treat to watch him.

saki vs Slowinski was great. It was a good low kick battle, but Saki landed some big shots with his hands and then timed to perfect punches while Sting was striking. The first put hi down while the second put him out. Saki vs Spong is going to be crazy in June, but I will already be back in the states.

Other notibles were Max stars dominating. Drago beat Stevelman in one sided fashion, while Nicky KO'd Mes in the second round. He scored a down in the first with his hands and the in the second he landed to back to back spinning back kick that landed on the jaw. K-1 hopeful Petrosyan was great, but he needed to stop his guy. He looked like it was to easy and that he wasn't looking for the stoppage. I told Jofeljoh during the fight that he looked like Buakaw fighting a no named Japanese guy. It would have been better that he finished.

All things included Mike's gym had a hard week, while Golden Glory was undefeated tonight. Ray''s team has also seen better days as they lost 2 tonight. I am sure both will bounce back strong.

So great card and great fights. Check them out and in particular check out the entrances for guys like Spong, Saki, Nicky, and the number one of the night Melvin.

[Mago]

Starting to watch the event fights and for now I can say: Karacs, what a bummer, he was looking so good there, nice and technical, good combos, tight low kicks - you can actually hear the bad block in which he busted his shin... Damn he looked pumped and I had him as the tournement winner. Just hope his chances in K1 aren't finished yet.

[Kobayashi]

Drago smashing Stevelmens...

Bad news for Masato, good news for Andy.

Good to see the K-1 MAX guys proving they're the best. Great win for Buakaw.

[K1power]

I just got home from the club and it was a looooooooong day. I must say that the event was FANTASTIC and it's a big shame that it wasn't televised in Japan.

I was about to type down my view on the event, but Lord Gaul put it down in a way that I couldn't have done better myself. The only downer was that Zabit clearly owned Zimmerman, but Zimmerman got the hometown decision.

I don't know how many of you guys are aware that Zimmermans entrance song 'bitch tits' was directed (and even created to be) at Bregy, but I thought it was a disgrace and hope Zimmerman will be matched up with an animal at the elims.

I will make more comments later, but I'm off to sleep now since I've been awake for like 24 hours straight.

[miscmisc]

Thanks for the great review.

I just read the reports on the official K-1 website, and even that says Samedov looked a little better than Zimmerman.

The report hypes up the hell out of Petrosyan too. Maybe we'll see him in MAX soon.

And Samedov says:

"I can't accept the decision in the final. I'll write an official complaint to FEG. I want the judges and officials in Japan to review the fight and make a correct decision. I hope it will be reversed."

http://www.k-1.co.jp/database/080426more/20080426_10.html

[Lord Gaul]

^^Thats right Zabit, go JLB on em. I thought he clearly won the fight.

The other thing I forgot to mention is Aerts called out Semmy. The cowd went wild at the news and it makes since that it would happen, because we have way to many Dutch fighters in the eliminations. I see Zimmerman getting Remy because of this.

[( o Y o )]

And Samedov says:

"I can't accept the decision in the final. I'll write an official complaint to FEG. I want the judges and officials in Japan to review the fight and make a correct decision. I hope it will be reversed."

http://www.k-1.co.jp/database/080426more/20080426_10.html

I haven't seen it, but he said the same after losing to Barry and Viney on the same night in Vegas last year (before pissing hot) so his opinion on the JD means nothing to me.

However, if everyone else seeing it says the same then the is a reason to be concerned.

[( o Y o )]

The other thing I forgot to mention is Aerts called out Semmy. The cowd went wild at the news and it makes since that it would happen, because we have way to many Dutch fighters in the eliminations. I see Zimmerman getting Remy because of this.

That's great....a fresh fight....though Aerts might be a bit rusty.

[Mofu]

What about Spong vs Saki in June????

Is that on the WGP Asia card?

[Jofeljoh!]

What about Spong vs Saki in June????

Is that on the WGP Asia card?

No that's here on a local card, but I think it's in november in Eindhoven though.

[jaco]

What about Spong vs Saki in June????

Is that on the WGP Asia card?

jofeljoh is right

[sparkles]

The event was fantastic. That mixture of max fights with heavyweights is a great formula and I hope that they will do that again next year. The max fights always have plenty of action and it's 100% pure fightsports, the big boys have the big KOs.

I really enjoyed every fight, I only had to hold my breath every time Donald started reading the scorecards. The final was such a shame. Both guys were the personalities of the evening, fought lvery ong and hard ( especially in Samedov his case ) and then those judges have ruin it all; judge Dave... I thought the fight was at least a draw, it would have been good for everyone.
Zimmerman didn't hit too much.

Samedov is a great fighter, hard to hit, good chin, great kicks, variety, unpredictable, speedy, great body punches, ... he fought great and very smart. Right now Zimmerman, who confirmed that he has all the ingredients to be a top fighter, got a hometown decision. This takes away the credibility of his tournament win despite having put up great fights. Samedov fought with all his heart 3 fights on 1 evening and get's screwed this way ...
Leaves a very bad taste ...

[Kenshin]

Personally i had all 3 rounds a draw in the final. I dont think Samedov owned Zimmerman.

[MZN]

Personally i had all 3 rounds a draw in the final. I dont think Samedov owned Zimmerman.

Yeah, I had it pretty even and would have understood that Samedov would get the nod.

[fightprof]

The event was fantastic. That mixture of max fights with heavyweights is a great formula and I hope that they will do that again next year. The max fights always have plenty of action and it's 100% pure fightsports, the big boys have the big KOs.

I really enjoyed every fight, I only had to hold my breath every time Donald started reading the scorecards. The final was such a shame. Both guys were the personalities of the evening, fought lvery ong and hard ( especially in Samedov his case ) and then those judges have ruin it all; judge Dave... I thought the fight was at least a draw, it would have been good for everyone.
Zimmerman didn't hit too much.

Samedov is a great fighter, hard to hit, good chin, great kicks, variety, unpredictable, speedy, great body punches, ... he fought great and very smart. Right now Zimmerman, who confirmed that he has all the ingredients to be a top fighter, got a hometown decision. This takes away the credibility of his tournament win despite having put up great fights. Samedov fought with all his heart 3 fights on 1 evening and get's screwed this way ...
Leaves a very bad taste ...

Samedov screwed himself!
At the rule meeting in Amsterdam it was made verly clear that any clinching would results in warnings and point deduction. They specially addressed this to Samedov as when he fights strong oponents, it becomes a litlle his trademark to throw a few punches and then clinch. To make things worse for himself, Samedov started putting up his hands after each round. He also received a warning for hitting after the break!
Zimmerman already fought the finals in the half finals against Breggy (my personal opinion), with 22 years old he is the next talent from Golden Glory together with youngster Gokhan Saki, who now has a 14 fight winning streak!
K-1, the promoter and the audience want to see fights like 95% was great of all fights in Amsterdam, all fighters got the message except Samedov! he screwed himself and Errol deserved to win that fight!
Both were very tired and preformed very well that night, but Errol did not clinch and wanted to fight, Samedov continued clinching, even when warned several times by the ref!
Samedov is too small for the heavyweight devision and is not a fighter like Melvin Manhoef. Manhoef is small to but comes to fight!

[sparkles]

I agree to some degree, but, correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think Samedov was deducted a point. I didn't see many clean hits in the fight and with an extra round one of the two fighters could have have distinguished himself from the other. I think it would have taken away some controversy and it would have been good for both the clearer winner and loser.
Samedov is indeed a bit too small for the heavyweights, but despite that he always puts up a good show. Every fighter has his own style. Melvin goes in for the kill, but you can't expect every fighter to fight that way; ask Catalin Morosanu. Samedov fights smart in an unpredictable way with a lot of variety and speed. Zimmerman is more suited for the big boys with his physique.

[fightprof]

I agree to some degree, but, correct me if I'm wrong, I don't think Samedov was deducted a point. I didn't see many clean hits in the fight and with an extra round one of the two fighters could have have distinguished himself from the other. I think it would have taken away some controversy and it would have been good for both the clearer winner and loser.
Samedov is indeed a bit too small for the heavyweights, but despite that he always puts up a good show. Every fighter has his own style. Melvin goes in for the kill, but you can't expect every fighter to fight that way; ask Catalin Morosanu. Samedov fights smart in an unpredictable way with a lot of variety and speed. Zimmerman is more suited for the big boys with his physique.


Unfortunalty for Samedov; people the promoter and K-1 are very clear about clinching. Being smart by throwing two punches and then immidiatly clinch to get no hit by a counter attack is not what is wanted and is against the rules. as Samedov is to small this is the only way he can survive with the big boys! That putting up his hands after each round must also have irritated the judges instead of bringing him the advantage he hoped for!

[Kenshin]

Samedov screwed himself!
At the rule meeting in Amsterdam it was made verly clear that any clinching would results in warnings and point deduction. They specially addressed this to Samedov as when he fights strong oponents, it becomes a litlle his trademark to throw a few punches and then clinch. To make things worse for himself, Samedov started putting up his hands after each round. He also received a warning for hitting after the break!
Zimmerman already fought the finals in the half finals against Breggy (my personal opinion), with 22 years old he is the next talent from Golden Glory together with youngster Gokhan Saki, who now has a 14 fight winning streak!
K-1, the promoter and the audience want to see fights like 95% was great of all fights in Amsterdam, all fighters got the message except Samedov! he screwed himself and Errol deserved to win that fight!
Both were very tired and preformed very well that night, but Errol did not clinch and wanted to fight, Samedov continued clinching, even when warned several times by the ref!
Samedov is too small for the heavyweight devision and is not a fighter like Melvin Manhoef. Manhoef is small to but comes to fight!

Sounds like a GG/Zimmerman fan boy or even involved person to me.

[Kenshin]

Unfortunalty for Samedov; people the promoter and K-1 are very clear about clinching. Being smart by throwing two punches and then immidiatly clinch to get no hit by a counter attack is not what is wanted and is against the rules. as Samedov is to small this is the only way he can survive with the big boys! That putting up his hands after each round must also have irritated the judges instead of bringing him the advantage he hoped for!

Where is your problem? The ref's could warn him and give him point deduction whenever they want. But the ref didn't, so what?

Dont try to take anything away from Zamedov man!

[fightprof]

Where is your problem? The ref's could warn him and give him point deduction whenever they want. But the ref didn't, so what?

Dont try to take anything away from Zamedov man!

I am not trying to take nothing away from Zamedov just stating the facts. He was avoiding the fight a lot by clinching. The ref and the judges were really hard on this during the rule meeting. I think he got a warning for hitting after the bell and several causions for clinching. Two or three causions is 1 point deduction, I think!
Why else two judges scores the fight 2 points difference, it was not even a split decisio?

[heckyl]

its wierd. i used to like samedov. but ever since he got the undeserved win against Barry, and then pissed hot for steroids and ignored his suspension... i just dont care when he loses or gets screwed anymore.

[sparkles]

Btw Saki surprised me. I haven't seen the fight but I though Slowinski would be too strong for him. You wouldn't say so, but Saki does have a good punch. He also knocked down Magomedov with a punch. I said it before and will say it again, Paul eats way too many punches, he's too easy to hit.
He survived Mo because the ref allowed him to recover, but I hope this is a wake up call for him ... he should work on his boxing dynamics.
Saki is fighting with leather shorts like JLB?

[K1power]

Yes, Slowinski got OWNED in a way that I never expected. I must say I'm really starting to like Saki. I remember when two years ago he was just circling around Ignashov, picking some points for a win and then getting owned by Bregy in the first round. By now though, he's actually developed his boxing skills and has a nice style to watch.

[Lord Gaul]

^^yeah the key to the development of Saki is his improved hands. He was all kicks and no factor with his hands until recently and that has made all the difference. He can be special, but I still doubt his chin a little bit. Other then that he has all the tools.

[Mago]

I agree with Fightprof regarding Samedov's tactic of doing his thing super fast and then deliberately clinching so as to not let the opponent respond. I'm not saying how he should or shouldn't fight, but it's a fact and I even understand why he would want to do this, but to me that's not so cool. I also don't see a CLEAR hometown decision, maybe Samedov was more active and scored some sharp hits, but Zimmerman was looking very dangerous with his knees (some of those visibly hurt/slowed down Zabit) and "looking dangerous" counts a lot on the judges impression. Samedov did good in the other fights, so no need to bash the guy either, but I really question how far he can go in K1 with his physical limitations.

As for Slowinsky, must say I'm very disappointed with him, sure Saki is very dangerous and a skilled fighter, but if Paul wanted to stabilish himself in the new generation K1 elite, it was an accessible fight and he shouldn't loose this kind of thing, let alone get KOed. In his position (not at all in a solid base with K1) this can be a major setback. He should be doing like Hari, KOing guys and looking good, or he'll get dropped like many others... So like Sparkles said, I really hope this is an eye opener for him, to stretch his arms a little bit and focus on his boxing base, because the kicks are already top notch...

BTW as for Saki winning streak, didn't he loose to Magomedov? I don't remember the final result, but even with the down in the first, he got destroyed the rest of the fight...

[Jofeljoh!]

No he won that fight.

[El Presidente]

Watched Bonjasky vs Manhoef... great fight but my only grip was the lack of reply. Even after the final KO they didnt replay it from various other angles. Kinda pissed me off. SOme of the downs looked a bit vague as well - but again with lack of proper replay I cant say for certain.

[( o Y o )]

its wierd. i used to like samedov. but ever since he got the undeserved win against Barry, and then pissed hot for steroids and ignored his suspension... i just dont care when he loses or gets screwed anymore.


Weird for me too as while I really like the guy, I feel the same way. He seems to attract drama, which I just don't really care for.

[miscmisc]

I just read Tanikawa's comment, and it sounds like he personally thought Samedov won the fight. But either way, he is clearly impressed with Zimmerman (he was saying all along Zimmerman was one of the best prospects), and still likes Samedov too. The decision will not be overturned, but K-1 isn't ditching him any time soon.

And he says he wants Spong to fight in K-1 on a regular basis.

[fightprof]

I agree with Fightprof regarding Samedov's tactic of doing his thing super fast and then deliberately clinching so as to not let the opponent respond. I'm not saying how he should or shouldn't fight, but it's a fact and I even understand why he would want to do this, but to me that's not so cool. I also don't see a CLEAR hometown decision, maybe Samedov was more active and scored some sharp hits, but Zimmerman was looking very dangerous with his knees (some of those visibly hurt/slowed down Zabit) and "looking dangerous" counts a lot on the judges impression. Samedov did good in the other fights, so no need to bash the guy either, but I really question how far he can go in K1 with his physical limitations.

As for Slowinsky, must say I'm very disappointed with him, sure Saki is very dangerous and a skilled fighter, but if Paul wanted to stabilish himself in the new generation K1 elite, it was an accessible fight and he shouldn't loose this kind of thing, let alone get KOed. In his position (not at all in a solid base with K1) this can be a major setback. He should be doing like Hari, KOing guys and looking good, or he'll get dropped like many others... So like Sparkles said, I really hope this is an eye opener for him, to stretch his arms a little bit and focus on his boxing base, because the kicks are already top notch...

BTW as for Saki winning streak, didn't he loose to Magomedov? I don't remember the final result, but even with the down in the first, he got destroyed the rest of the fight...

No Saki won the fight against Magomedov in Istanbul, he knocked him down twice in the first round!

[Lord Gaul]

Great to hear that he wants Spong fighting in K-1 on a regular basis. He has been working hard and he is young and akes good decisions. Plus they can say he is from suriname if they don't want to deal with all the Dutch guys.

As far as the Mag/Saki fight goes Mag actually did pretty good. But like it was mentioned he was downed twice in the first making it a 10-7 round. I actually had Mag winning the last to rounds of the fight making the best score he could have 27 which couldn't catch Saki's 28. withought a down it is almost impossible to catch up from two downs

[MZN]

Watched Bonjasky vs Manhoef... great fight but my only grip was the lack of reply. Even after the final KO they didnt replay it from various other angles. Kinda pissed me off. SOme of the downs looked a bit vague as well - but again with lack of proper replay I cant say for certain.

That was something that bugged me too. The camera angles and coverage wasn't what we are used to when it comes to the usual k-1 events and that showed in difficulty getting the replays right as they were framed quite badly..

For the people who were there: Did everyone manage to be nice to eachother outside the ring? (i.e. what was the atmosphere like) The Korean commentators nearly soiled themselves when it was announced that you weren't allowed to smoke in the venue (little do they know:)).

[K1power]

I was positively surprised with the crowd. Off course there were still moments when some idiots started whistling/booing for no apparent reason, but it seemed there were way less loud and random drunks and more fight fans. Also, I think it helped a lot that the level of fights this year was lightyears above last years event.

BTW: About the sometimes too close up camera angles and replays. I agree, compared to the shows in Japan and Las Vegas, Holland looks like an amateur country in that department. Still, the overall idea of what was going on during the fights comes over good enough to enjoy (re)watching them.

[Mago]

Great to hear that he wants Spong fighting in K-1 on a regular basis. He has been working hard and he is young and akes good decisions. Plus they can say he is from suriname if they don't want to deal with all the Dutch guys.

As far as the Mag/Saki fight goes Mag actually did pretty good. But like it was mentioned he was downed twice in the first making it a 10-7 round. I actually had Mag winning the last to rounds of the fight making the best score he could have 27 which couldn't catch Saki's 28. withought a down it is almost impossible to catch up from two downs

That's a good analysis, been a while since I seen that fight, shameful end though...

[Mago]

Another question, perhaps someone with inside information from the backstage could answer: how is Paul Slowinsky planning on getting his place in the Semis this year? He can't be winning regionals everytime, and you don't get the feeling K1 likes him enough to secure an invitation... Hope I'm wrong and they are planning hm there.

BTW: Slowinsky just reminded me - As for Aerts calling out Schilt, that guy i just incredible, he's in the last part of his career but instead of taking it easy he's deliberately taking the hardest roads and the big risks, if it happens this fight will be extremely significant either way - we can end up not having Aerts in the GP (again, but the other time he couldn't make it) for a great loss to K1 fans in general, or he can have a Schilt-free Final, which many would consider as a great thing (not me, though). Aerts is literally calling the responsability to give the org and the other guys a "break" from the appearently invincible Tower...

[sparkles]

It's probably some kind of strategy of Aerts that suits the fans well.
He knows that his chances of beating Schilt in a tournament formula are very small because at his age he lacks the stamina to compete or beat Schilt in for instance a semi final. One of the things that makes Schilt so unbeatable is his stamina and workrate, especially in a tournament when other fighters get tired more quickly. So basically he prefers to face Schilt when he is fresh and doesn't have to worry about injuries. In one match his stamina won't favour him (Schilt ) as much as in a tournament formula.

[Jofeljoh!]

And even if he gets beaten by Schilt, he might still get a wildcard in the best-case scenario...

[Mago]

Wildcard, but I thought he challenged Schilt for the Eliminations, if he looses the most he gets is a spot for reserve like in 06...

[Lord Gaul]

^^I think that is what he generally means. I mean there have been a few cases when fighters have left because of contract disputes and injures ala Leko in 03 going to Pride and Schilts injury(or whatever) the year before.

[Wheelie]

Btw Saki surprised me. I haven't seen the fight but I though Slowinski would be too strong for him.

I just posted the fight in another topic