2003/03/30

Sapp's next match up was against the elite Croatian kickboxer named Mirko Filipovic. To prepare for the match, Sapp now had southpaw sparring partners flown into his training camp. Although Sapp is naturally left handed, he fights from an orthodox stance. Filipovic started the fight experimenting with defensive strategies not used by Abidi and Hoost, holding and running. Both successfully shut down Sapp's brutish attacks  and frustrated the goliath. Sapp, however, was no more above foul techniques than he had ever been. When Filipovic held his right arm, Sapp used the left to send low blows into his opponents cup. Referee Kakuda offered Filipovic a rest but the Croatian declined. When the fight resumed, Sapp began to show wariness to Filipovic's hard kicks. Suddenly, Filipovic sent a hard kick to Sapp's arm and then a straight left into Sapp's face cracking the orbital bone. Sapp fell to the canvas screaming, spit out his mouth piece and waited for the full count. Filipovic took the #1 rank. 

2003/08/15

Bob Sapp's next match was against unheralded Kimo Leopoldo [record 0-1] in Las Vegas. Until this time Sapp had become an enormous star in Japan. He endorsed uncountable products and made television appearances nearly everyday. The K-1 therefore believed that he would be able to produce the numbers in the United States. He had his appearance on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno and demonstrated the spooky laugh that had beguiled the Japanese fanbase. Fox news and TIME magazine also had things to say about the American superstar in Japan. To prepare for the fight Sapp started practicing Seido kaikan karate. This involved running on a beach and punching watermelons.

The fight with Kimo naturally had Referee Nobuaki Kakuda protect the investment. 

Sapp tried a few things that he hadn't in past fights. He threw a few kicks and knees. Leopoldo stuck to the one attack that could reach its target with some consistency, the left jab. In fact, by the middle of the 1^st round the left jab connected so sharply, Sapp went wobbly. Leopoldo sensing victory leaped on the awkward Sapp who continued to throw wild punches. Unexpectedly, one of the haymakers got though and scored a flash knockdown, giving Leopoldo a count and Sapp a needed rest. When the action resumed, Leopoldo again connected with the left jab and this time Sapp went down.

Kakuda made no notice of the fact that Sapp couldn't stand up on his own feet or that his hips swung around like someone playing with a hula hoop. The referee gave Sapp a full count and the fight resumed. Leopoldo only had a few seconds to try to capitalize on Sapp's undermined reflexes before the round came to an end.

When the break came to its end, Sapp didn't step up to fight. Although Leopoldo began to celebrate, he was quickly told by Kakuda that the fight wasn't over. A ring doctor was in Sapp's corner demanding time to check the fighter's eyes. Referee Kakuda and Trainer Maurice Smith played an improvised skit to buy time and even Nevada Athletic Commissioner stepped up on the ring apron to add authority.

With a two minute break, Sapp was now better recovered to continue the fight. He quickly abandoned the kickboxing skills that failed him in the first round and resorted to the brawling that had given him success in the past. Within seconds, he scored a knock down. In response, Leopoldo removed his mouth piece and deliberately threw it to the canvas. Referee Kakuda picked it up and had Leopoldo's corner rinse it off before putting it back in the fighter's mouth. This gave Sapp even more time to recover. The fight resumed with Sapp chasing Leopoldo, bracing him against the ropes and dropping hammer blows. The coup de grace is a straight right to the back of Leopoldo's head.

Humiliated by an aged punching bag with a 0-1 record and a crowd chanting "Kimo. Kimo.", Sapp now had to take this high perposterone moment and hype a match with none other than former boxing champion Mike Tyson.

Tyson: If he signs the Marquis of Queensbury, I'll fight him… tonight.  

Sapp: Hey. They may call you Kid Dynamite, but if you mess with me, I'll put your fuse out.

Tyson: Sign the contract Big Boy. Sign the contract.

Sapp: I'll sign it in blood punk. Where you at?

Sapp was then officially announced the winner of the Leopoldo fight and the venue erupted with booing. As much as people in the west find eastern cultures difficult to understand, the K-1 were surprised that the formula that worked in Japan flopped in Sapp's home country.

2003/10/11

As if things couldn't get worse, the K-1 decided to match the flagship against Remy Bonjasky. Sapp stuck to the bull rush strategy hoping it would be as effective against Remy as it was against Hoost. In a sense, it was. The smothering did put Bonjasky against the ropes but there were no clean hits and as soon as he slowed down the assault, Remy would escape to the middle of the ring again. It looked as if Remy would have a tired Sapp by the third round to either knock out or score impressive points. Suddenly, a high kick by Bonjasky hit putting a toe in the eye for a knockdown. Sapp tried to communicate that he had worries about his eye but referee Kakuda refused to listen and gave both fighters the command to fight. Bonjasky, sensing a chance to land his favorite technique, leaped across the ring to hit Sapp with his knee. Needing time to assess his own injury, Sapp decided to use a foul technique. He threw Bonjasky to the canvas and punched him in the head while he was still prone. Referee Kakuda gave both Sapp and Bonjasky the time to recover. During this time Sapp had a doctor look at his eye. Bonjasky, however, refused to participate in the Sapp-Kakuda game and left the ring with a victory by disqualification blocking Sapp from entering the Grand Prix.

2003/12/31

Sapp's next fight pitted his popularity against that of every Japanese pop star. Like X-mas in the west, New Years eve is a time for Japanese to get together. Part of the tradition over the past 40 years has been to watch the Kohaku Music Festival on NHK. The rival networks conceded defeated for years due to the name power of the music talent.

The pieces had already been put in motion with Antonio Inoki's bold challenges to NHK's market share. The K-1, however, had a superstar of their own and sought another news worthy subject. The answer turned out to be a rare find, a retired Sumo Grand Champion.

Akebono became the 64^th Yokozuna in the 300 year history of the sport of sumo and the first non-Japanese to hold the honor. With a mere 6 weeks of training, Akebono was set to end the year 2003 with his first K-1 match. No longer competitive at sumo and boasting a 0-0 record in kickboxing, Akebono managed to make Bob Sapp look like a skilled fighter. The fight ended with a devastating knockout.