K-1 - Musashi, Hoost and Sapp Win in Saitama

The penultimate bout featured four-time K-1 World GP Champion, 38 year-old Ernesto "Mr. Perfect" Hoost of the Netherlands. Unfortunately, a training injury had scratched Hoost's scheduled opponent, defending World GP Champ Remy Bonjasky, from the card. Taking Bonjasky's place was Swiss karate fighter Xhavit Bajrami.

A late substitution, Bajrami really had nothing to lose here. To be sure, Bajrami is no pushover. The Team Andy (Hug) fighter has beaten tough customers such as Lloyd Van Dams and Mirco CroCop in compiling a record of 17 wins in 25 K-1 bouts. Plus, Bajrami is 10 years younger than Hoost, although you wouldn't have guessed it from his performance in this fight.

Hoost, always a paradigm of poise, was technical and balanced if unspectacular here. Unfortunately, Bajrami did not mount a very spirited challenge against the four-time Champion until it was too late. For most of the bout, the two sparred with little enthusiasm, Hoost throwing low kicks, coming in with one-two-three punch combinations, Bajrami responding in kind. At one point in the second, after absorbing three quick straight punches, Bajrami dropped his guard and blew Hoost a kiss, to suggest that Mr. Perfect did not have much mustard on his attacks. If Bajrami had turned it up a bit he might have had a chance to upset Hoost, who was far from his best here. Bajrami got a cheer from the crowd when he threw a nice Andy Hug-style ax kick late in the third, and this seemed to encourage the fighter, who proceeded to charge in and attack with much more vigor.

The final minute of this fight had more excitement than the first eight, but it was, as they say, too little too late. Hoost was only slightly ruffled as he weathered the storm, and went on to collect the win by a narrow but unanimous decision.

"I was not really into this fight," said Hoost afterwards," and that is why it went so slowly. I had prepared for Remy (Bonjasky) and I was very disappointed when I found out I was not fighting him. I had already beat Xhavit twice, it was not a challenge for me to beat him a third time."