Q: Having reached its 15th anniversary, what themes does K-1 have for this year?

K-1 Event Producer, Mr. Sadaharu Tanikawa: The K-1 concept for this year poses the question, “The world’s strongest or the world’s most impressive?” K-1 has been originally inviting world champions of a variety of combative sports to hold World GPs based on the theme “Who is the world’s strongest?” The winner in the GP, as you see, has proved to be the world’s strongest.

Q: That original theme has permeated as “K” of K-1 implies Karate, kicks, Kung-fu and so on.

Tanikawa: As for last year, the world’s strongest fighter was Semmy Schilt who was said to be the absolute champion. No one would deny it. However some people view it differently and do not think it was always the champions from the past that made today’s K-1 an exciting, dynamic and glorious event throughout the world. In other words, MIP (Most Impressive Player) is such a fighter

Q: You mean, the strongest and the most impressive are different?

Tanikawa: They are not always the same. Of course, you are required to have a tough body and spiritual strength as well distinguished technique and power, all at world class level. You also need to have good luck, like fighters often mention it as a keyword for the championship and say, “Being lucky is necessary to win the GP.” Good luck is an essential factor to be a champion. Injuries, bodily damage, and above all, pairings count on luck. We have seen lucky fighters win a championship in unexpected cases where the fighter thought to become champion lost in the first match.

Q: Looking back on K-1’s history, Mike Bernardo has surprisingly defeated Peter Aerts, the defending champion, by knocking him out in the first match in the 1996 GP final tournament. Also in the 1999 GP, Jerome LeBanner defeated Aerts. Everyone’s breath must have been taken away by those moments.

Tanikawa: You are right. Fighters like Bernardo and LeBanner are those who I think are worth MIP. Although Bernardo had never made it to the top in the GP until he finally retired, he could have been the winner if it had been a single match or a title match. It really is a disappointment to me that he retired without a crown when I think like that.

Q: He might have won it if there had been world title belts besides the GP.

Tanikawa: It is very likely that could have happened. In his best days Bernardo was particularly good in single matches. There are many we could name who are considered better in single matches than in a tournament. One on the active list is LeBanner who we mentioned earlier. Few people would argue with it.

Q: LeBanner himself said “I’m a single match fighter. I fight in the GP because I am not happy with myself like this.”

Tanikawa: Maybe he is the one who is really happy about the introduction of title belts. We can spotlight the world’s impressive fighters like LeBanner when they win the belt, so this is a good system for us too. After winning the belt, you are ready to be at the top of the GP, aiming for the “grand slam.” Then you can be an honourable champion, being the worlds strongest and the most impressive at the same time. That’s the goal to achieve from now on.

Q: By the way, there are two titles to be introduced, the super heavyweight (over 100kg) and the heavyweight (under 100kg), right?

Tanikawa: We are thinking about adding more titles, but at the moment, yes. Compared to the past, today’s K-1 fighters are getting heavier. With Schilt first on the list, there are many huge fighters who are over 2 meters: Choi Hong-man, Akebono. Jan “The Giant” Nortje and Bjorn Bregy. A weight over 130kg is also becoming normal. The fighters in the 90-99kg and 180-190cm category are at a disadvantage when they face such huge fighters. We will not change the GP’s open-weight concept, but K-1 can no longer remain dramatic if only huge fighters remain in the tournament. Taking that into consideration, we made it so the fighters can choose either over or under the 100kg division. The problem is which division the 100-110kg fighters will choose.

Q: In other words, the question is which title four of the best eight fighters, Aerts, Remy Bonjasky, Ray Sefo and Glaube Feitosa are going to take.

Tanikawa: Yes, that will be the main focus. You need to be under 100kg to fight in the heavyweight division, so it may be a disadvantage if you are going to lose weight for it and gain weight again to fight with super heavyweight class fighters like Schilt in the GP. We are going to keep our eye on which fighter chooses which, but I predict that they will purposely choose the super heavyweight division as their main arena.

Q: This time Schilt and Sefo are fighting each other as the super heavyweight title match which decides the very first champion.

Tanikawa: As for the super heavyweight division, no one would object if we said Schilt, the championship holder in the GP, is the provisional champion considering his strength. Also, everyone would agree that Sefo is good enough to fight with the absolute champion, Schilt. I am sure this title match to settle the first champion will be satisfying.

Q: There is no doubt about it

Tanikawa: Sefo is especially serious about this match against Schilt, so much so that he decided not to take part in “Dynamite!!” at the end of last year. In the past, they fought in the first match of the 2005 GP final tournament where Schilt became champion for the first time. Almost all of the fighters were unable to do anything, being overwhelmed by Schilt’s strength, and Sefo was the only one who managed to make it to a decision. Sefo even cried with regret after the match. I have been watching him since his K-1 debut, and it was the first time he cried after losing as far as I know. It is natural to regret when you lose, but that match must have been so shocking as to bring Sefo, who was always cheerful and smiling, to tears.

Q: He also remains uncrowned although he has made it to the GP final.

Tanikawa: Basically Sefo is not as big as the others. He still has strength that equals the huge fighters and dares to trade blows with them. He is more likely to get heavy damage in a tournament than in a single fight. He is surely one of those fighters that could have taken MIP many times because he has been excellent in a number of fights, although disadvantaged. So the fight between Schilt and Sefo is one that literally deserves the theme, “The world’s strongest or the world’s most impressive?” Either Sefo proves to be the world’s most impressive fighter or Schilt takes it along with his current title. The fight between their prides is already making me excited.

Q: Also the challenger decision matches for the heavyweight title are notable. The winners of the Musashi versus Yusuke Fujimoto and Ruslan Karaev versus Badr Hari fights will compete for the title in Hawaii on April 28th.

Tanikawa: In my view these four fighters are all good enough to contest the title. Musashi is an ace in Japan and has proceeded to the World GP final tournament many times. Fujimoto is last year’s Asia GP champion, so the match between them will decide which of them is really the greatest in Asia. Ruslan is one of the best eight fighters from the 2006 GP, but he has a disadvantage in physique compared to huge fighters like Schilt and Choi Hong-man. Although it is amazing he challenges huge fighters with his fast technique, it is also true that he is physically beaten afterwards. I am interested in how good he is in a single match.

Q: The same is true for Badr Hari.

Tanikawa: Of course his fans have great expectations, and he is probably suited to single matches, meaning he could be one of he most impressive players. Besides, the match is going to be very exciting because it is his revenge match against Ruslan, so I am really looking forward to it.

Q: The last time they fought was the opening match of the 2006 GP. After that match, Badr Hari protested that Ruslan attacked him when he was down. Many of the fans will remember it.

Tanikawa: Yes, I cannot wait to watch it. Winning the match is a step towards the heavyweight title so neither of them can afford to lose. I hope they will play fair and show us clearly who the winner is.

Q: We are very interested in who the first champion of the titles will be, but we are also curious about how many more division titles there are going to be introduced.

Tanikawa: Before moving to that topic, we are basically trying to strengthen K-1’s features as an event and as a sport, by introducing new concepts.  Strengthening the event features includes introducing division titles, enhancing Japanese fighters and other Asian (Korean, Chinese) fighters.

Q: Enhancing and raising Japanese fighter’s means picking out fighters in the tryouts that are now being put into practice, right?

Tanikawa: We are planning to gather fighters with talent and excellent physical ability from baseball, rugby, American football and soccer worlds along with combative sport world, and then make teams to train them with Ernesto Hoost and Mike Bernardo as their mentors. We are also thinking about training them and holding competitions in the Netherlands and South Africa. Of the Japanese fighters, Musashi and Fujimoto are doing their best, but we need to raise more world-class fighters for the future. Japanese fighters cannot get behind when K-1 is certainly becoming more popular around the world. We will give high priority to raising great Japanese fighters.

Q: Can you tell us about raising other Asian fighters?

Tanikawa: We have to improve the level of other Asian, including Japanese fighters when strong European fighters are dominating K-1. In Korea and china we have support from the local TV stations like FujiTV in Japan, and they are involved in scouting and raising fighters. We expect there will be world-class fighters like Musashi and Choi Hong-man if we invite a wide range of fighters and take time to raise them.

Q: You said K-1 is becoming more popular around the world, so you can tell by the recent response?

Tanikawa: The K-1 World GP series is broadcast in 135 countries at this point in time. This number shows how much K-1 is spreading around the world. People are now watching K-1 in more places than we expected. Because of this, the idea of a “K-1 World Cup” has come up.

Q: When it comes to a World Cup, soccer is famous.

Tanikawa: Now that K-1 is spreading around the world this much, it is no longer a dream to make K-1 a huge universal event like soccer’s World Cup or baseball’s WBC. What is necessary now is to establish a commissioner. As everyone knows, FEG is an event management company. We need to establish a commission, like FIFA, which runs differently from the event management company and administers competitions responsibly. I want to leave it to someone who is socially in a high position and capable of legal preparation including making rules, like a Supreme Court justice, even if they are amateur in the combative sports field. So we are planning to establish a commissioner and hold a “K-1 World Cup” in 2011, four years from now. The World Cup will be an international competition where fighters of five divisions from each country would fight against each other.

Q: Can you tell us what the five divisions would be?

Tanikawa: They are super heavyweight, heavyweight, light heavyweight, the middleweight of K-1 MAX, and lightweight. Fighters’ physiques vary depending on the country, so each country will have its strong and weak divisions. Five divisions will balance it and make it fair for every country.

Q: From Japan for example, Akebono, Musashi, Masato, TOMO and Norifumi ‘KID’ Yamamoto would be selected as members of the Japanese “dream team” aiming for the top. That would be very gripping.

Tanikawa: It cannot be realized immediately, but we will pursue it positively.

Q: Lastly, please explain the World GP system for this year.

Tanikawa: There aren’t many changes in the system, but one big change is that the first super heavyweight and heavyweight champions will automatically take part in the World GP opening tournament held at the end of September. If the champion is one of the previous year’s best eight fighters, we will select more MIP fighters based on the fans’ poll and sponsors’ recommendation. The remaining four fighters who will meet the previous year’s best eight fighters in the opening tournament are: the 4.28 USA GP Champion, the 6.23 EUROPE GP Champion, the 7.29 ASIA GP Champion, and the 8.11 International Last Preliminary Round Champion. The winners will proceed to the World GP final tournament that is going to be held at the beginning of December.

Q: To my surprise, this year’s opening tournament will be held in Korea.

Tanikawa: It suggests K-1 has entered a new age. Of the World GP series, only the 2007 World GP in Yokohama and the World GP final will be held in Japan. The others are a series of tours to be held in Hawaii, the Netherlands, Hong Kong, Macau, Germany or Las Vegas, and Korea. Holding K-1 only in Japan is not the right way for making it a more universal event. Especially in Korea, I can tell that K-1 is becoming more popular than in Japan thanks to Choi Hong-man’s popularity. Considering such a demand, we took the plunge and decided to hold it in Korea.

Q: We will soon have to go abroad to watch K-1 live.

Tanikawa: It is not far off. Of course, I think about the Japanese fans first and foremost, so we try to hold the GP final in Japan at least.

Q: Please do so. (laughs)

Tanikawa: To do so, we need to raise truly great Japanese fighters.

Reproduced with permission.

Feel free to discuss this interview here.