Schilt, Karaev and Choi Victorious in K-1
Karaev victorious
Mike Sloan Apr 30, 2006
LAS VEGAS, April 29 — The most eagerly awaited bout of the evening
lived up to pre-fight expectations and surpassed them by about the
midway point of the second round.
Russia’s Ruslan Karaev and Germany’s Stefan Leko (Pictures) dazzled and electrified the sold-out crowd inside the Mirage Convention Center for three intense rounds of K-1 wizardry. Virtually every member of the crowd begged for the fight to be longer than just three rounds at the battle’s conclusion, but with some wishful thinking, there could be a rematch down the road.
After a high-paced opening round that saw both men using their
strategies perfectly, it seemed as though Karaev was going to score
a shocking upset in the second.
Leko had his legs buckled from a sneaky left hook in that round and was felled moments later from a blistering flurry. He was able to beat the count, but walked into a whopping left hook when the fight continued. Leko then stumbled all around the ring and it looked as though Karaev was going to finish “Blitz” off, but the German miraculously was able to stay on his feet and survive the rest of the round.
But somehow, unimaginably, Leko unleashed a hellish right hook that exploded on Karaev’s jaw.
The Russian crumbled onto the canvas like a fallen tower of Jenga blocks and once his jolted body collapsed from under his feet, there was no chance he was getting up. Karaev was knocked completely out from the deadly right hand Leko just landed, but the warrior spirit inside Karaev allowed him to climb back onto his feet. Karaev managed to beat the count and keep himself standing still long enough to convince the referee to allow him to continue.
Leko, knowing he needed the miracle knockout, bombarded his dazed foe with everything he had — the only downfall was that Leko had only nine seconds to finish him off.
Leko was able to plant two more punches onto Karaev, but time ran out and the bell sounded to end the fight. Karaev, had there been maybe 20 more seconds, probably would have been stopped. But Leko didn’t have enough time and it cost him the win.
Karaev was awarded the victory via tallies of 29-27 (twice) and 28-27 (as did Sherdog.com), improving his stunning pro ledger to 160-8 (125). Leko dipped to 50-14-1 (29).
There has to be a rematch.
Schilt Topples Musashi
Semmy Schilt (Pictures) has certainly come into his own over the course of the last few years. What with his winning last year's K-1 World Grand Prix title and all. Schilt was pitted against perennial Japanese favorite Musashi and the towering Dutchman made it look almost too easy.
Musashi couldn't get past telephone pole-like jabs and stinging leg kicks and was frustrated beyond belief. Musashi never won a round and was deducted a point in the second round for excessive holding. Schilt's size alone would be enough to give his opponent fits, but the fact that his stand-up game has improved tenfold over the years made Musashi's outing a virtual lost cause.
When it was all said and done, Musashi was a beaten man with a nasty cut on his forehead. Schilt was unscathed and wound up trouncing the two-time World GP runner-up via scores of 30-26 on all three ringside judges' scorecards.
Schilt is poised to defend his K-1 crown and he looked more than capable of pulling off the feat while dismantling Musashi from start to finish. If Schilt can perform as well this year as he did in 2005, it'll be a near insurmountable task of dethroning him.
Choi Survives War and Edges Terkay
Mere seconds into the contest, American mountain man Sylvester Terkay (Pictures) (4-2) was deposited onto his gloves and knees wondering how on Earth he got there. It seemed at that point that the enormous Korean Hong-Man Choi was going to have an easy, quick night of work after scoring a flash knockdown. But Terkay was able to pull himself together, survive a second-round knockdown and force Choi into a bloody war of attrition he didn’t expect.
The massive Terkay, standing at a whopping 6’ 6”, was dwarfed in comparison to the 7’ 2” Choi. But sometimes the “little” guys carry with them the bigger scrap and the fans received their money’s worth in just this fight.
The two heavyweights slugged each other from pillar to post, not willing to budge at any cost. Both men were staggered badly and Terkay received a gruesome gash over his right eye. Still, the fight wound up going to the scorecards.
Every single person in attendance, from actor Bruce Willis to NBA star Ray Allen to three-time K-1 World Grand Prix champion Peter Aerts (Pictures), were standing on their feet cheering the two warriors on until the final bell. It was a fight most ardent K-1 fans did not initially want to see, but after it was all said and done these same experts were clamoring for a rematch.
The fight was this good.
Choi, now 7-1 (3), was awarded a unanimous decision victory by the scores of 29-27, 28-26 and 29-26, one he clearly deserved to win solely on the strength of his two knockdowns.
The crowd booed the decision, as when it was all said and done it seemed like Terkay actually whipped the big lug’s butt. But the scoring was just. It was an unbelievable war that, no matter how the judges scored and how the crowd booed, there absolutely, positively has to be a rematch.
It’s got to happen.
Russia’s Ruslan Karaev and Germany’s Stefan Leko (Pictures) dazzled and electrified the sold-out crowd inside the Mirage Convention Center for three intense rounds of K-1 wizardry. Virtually every member of the crowd begged for the fight to be longer than just three rounds at the battle’s conclusion, but with some wishful thinking, there could be a rematch down the road.
Advertisement
Leko had his legs buckled from a sneaky left hook in that round and was felled moments later from a blistering flurry. He was able to beat the count, but walked into a whopping left hook when the fight continued. Leko then stumbled all around the ring and it looked as though Karaev was going to finish “Blitz” off, but the German miraculously was able to stay on his feet and survive the rest of the round.
Entering the third, it appeared as though Leko might have needed a
knockout to win and after he was knocked down again early in the
final stanza, that miracle knockout had to happen. Again, Leko was
staggering and eating too many punches from Karaev and again, it
was only a matter of time before Leko was knocked off his feet for
good.
But somehow, unimaginably, Leko unleashed a hellish right hook that exploded on Karaev’s jaw.
The Russian crumbled onto the canvas like a fallen tower of Jenga blocks and once his jolted body collapsed from under his feet, there was no chance he was getting up. Karaev was knocked completely out from the deadly right hand Leko just landed, but the warrior spirit inside Karaev allowed him to climb back onto his feet. Karaev managed to beat the count and keep himself standing still long enough to convince the referee to allow him to continue.
Leko, knowing he needed the miracle knockout, bombarded his dazed foe with everything he had — the only downfall was that Leko had only nine seconds to finish him off.
Leko was able to plant two more punches onto Karaev, but time ran out and the bell sounded to end the fight. Karaev, had there been maybe 20 more seconds, probably would have been stopped. But Leko didn’t have enough time and it cost him the win.
Karaev was awarded the victory via tallies of 29-27 (twice) and 28-27 (as did Sherdog.com), improving his stunning pro ledger to 160-8 (125). Leko dipped to 50-14-1 (29).
There has to be a rematch.
Schilt Topples Musashi
Semmy Schilt (Pictures) has certainly come into his own over the course of the last few years. What with his winning last year's K-1 World Grand Prix title and all. Schilt was pitted against perennial Japanese favorite Musashi and the towering Dutchman made it look almost too easy.
Musashi couldn't get past telephone pole-like jabs and stinging leg kicks and was frustrated beyond belief. Musashi never won a round and was deducted a point in the second round for excessive holding. Schilt's size alone would be enough to give his opponent fits, but the fact that his stand-up game has improved tenfold over the years made Musashi's outing a virtual lost cause.
When it was all said and done, Musashi was a beaten man with a nasty cut on his forehead. Schilt was unscathed and wound up trouncing the two-time World GP runner-up via scores of 30-26 on all three ringside judges' scorecards.
Schilt is poised to defend his K-1 crown and he looked more than capable of pulling off the feat while dismantling Musashi from start to finish. If Schilt can perform as well this year as he did in 2005, it'll be a near insurmountable task of dethroning him.
Choi Survives War and Edges Terkay
Mere seconds into the contest, American mountain man Sylvester Terkay (Pictures) (4-2) was deposited onto his gloves and knees wondering how on Earth he got there. It seemed at that point that the enormous Korean Hong-Man Choi was going to have an easy, quick night of work after scoring a flash knockdown. But Terkay was able to pull himself together, survive a second-round knockdown and force Choi into a bloody war of attrition he didn’t expect.
The massive Terkay, standing at a whopping 6’ 6”, was dwarfed in comparison to the 7’ 2” Choi. But sometimes the “little” guys carry with them the bigger scrap and the fans received their money’s worth in just this fight.
The two heavyweights slugged each other from pillar to post, not willing to budge at any cost. Both men were staggered badly and Terkay received a gruesome gash over his right eye. Still, the fight wound up going to the scorecards.
Every single person in attendance, from actor Bruce Willis to NBA star Ray Allen to three-time K-1 World Grand Prix champion Peter Aerts (Pictures), were standing on their feet cheering the two warriors on until the final bell. It was a fight most ardent K-1 fans did not initially want to see, but after it was all said and done these same experts were clamoring for a rematch.
The fight was this good.
Choi, now 7-1 (3), was awarded a unanimous decision victory by the scores of 29-27, 28-26 and 29-26, one he clearly deserved to win solely on the strength of his two knockdowns.
The crowd booed the decision, as when it was all said and done it seemed like Terkay actually whipped the big lug’s butt. But the scoring was just. It was an unbelievable war that, no matter how the judges scored and how the crowd booed, there absolutely, positively has to be a rematch.
It’s got to happen.
