Kakutougi:  Until a few weeks ago, we hadn’t seen you in the ring in almost a year. Why is that?

Jan:  I took some time off to start my new property development company back home in South Africa. That took lots of my time. And I had to get my hunger back for fighting...and boy am I ready and hungry now!!!

Kakutougi:  What have you been doing since you have been away from the K-1 ring?

Jan:  Setting up the company, and putting the deals together too. Lots of hard work and it is still not finished. But it’s almost done! I also helped with sparring and preparing for fights for my friends Ray, Glaube and Virgil.

Kakutougi:  You seem to be in demand as a sparring partner to help prepare other fighters for upcoming fights, and have been for quite some time. Who are some of the better known names you have worked with?

Jan:  Yes yes, they only use me for my big size and my smashing good looks (ha ha)! In boxing I helped Henry Akinwande, Axl Schilts, Corie Sanders, Cedric Fields, Clifford Etienne and I even did some rounds with Lennox Lewis when he lost his title in Africa! In kickboxing Bob Sapp, Francois Botha, Ray Sefo, Glaube Feitosa, Gary Goodridge and a couple more...but if I forgot to mention their name it’s because they hit me too hard!

Kakutougi:  We know you were training very seriously for an upcoming fight with several months left on training camp when you got the phone call that you were suddenly fighting Gary Goodridge in 3 days...what went through your mind at that point? (Note: Jan replaced The Predator who suddenly pulled out.)

Jan:  Money, revenge, blood, more money and a chance to get my year started in a good way.

Kakutougi:  Was it strange for you to fight Gary because he is such a good friend and you have trained with him before?

Jan:  No, I think we are professional enough to switch the emotions off for a day or two to kick some ass for 15 minutes!

Kakutougi:  So that last fight was under mixed martial arts rules. How much experience do you have with takedowns, wrestling, and submissions?

Jan:  I did some MMA fights before but it was a while ago. You know me, plant four corner posts, rap some rope around them, and call it a ring and I will jump in and fight!! I did training with Bob, Sam Greco and Marco Jara before, but obviously not enough to call myself an expert.

Kakutougi:  Thinking about how that phone call came out of the blue; as a big and tall fighter that doesn't want to go for Sapp-like gimmicks, do you feel that you're dumped into a "big and tall" group of fighters that are contracted very sporadically, and used to fire up other fighter’s careers?

Jan:   People like to see big men fight, maybe hoping that the smaller guy whips his butt. But I know it sells tickets and puts asses on seats. I think the smaller guys work harder at their skill, where as us big boys just come with the power stuff (and the good looks of course)!

Kakutougi:  What was training like up until that phone call to fight Gary? I'd guess with months left, you were far from peaking already?

Jan:  I helped Ray prepare for his fight with Semmy for about 2 months. The call came after that fight and I was messing around in the gym trying to get my fat ass back into shape! I was far from any kind of serious fight level, but I gave it hell while I was in there. He knew he had to stop me because I was going to come out with all guns blazing.

Kakutougi:  Have you thought about your size, weight, and strength maybe being well suited for mixed martial arts instead of kickboxing, and that there's maybe more room for you as an individual there?

Jan:  I think with the right training, training partners and a MMA instructor, shit, it would be hard to stop me!

Kakutougi:  And while still on the topic of MMA, what do you think of the big DYNAMITE HERO’s event FEG has announced? And if you could get on the card, are you interested?

Jan:  All power to them. They are taking a big market right by the horns and if they succeed, well they WILL be the biggest. And I think competition is good. It is no fun if only one MMA company makes all the money!
Like I said, call it a ring, pay me and I will fight anybody!!!

Kakutougi:  You were once signed by Don King for Boxing, what made you decide to focus on K-1 and MMA permanently and was the transition from boxing to kick boxing and MMA hard to do?

Jan:  Boxing was good for me, but the powers that be like Mr. King didn’t deliver on their promises. So I came back to what I love, and to the fans and people that I love. 

Kakutougi:  Which do you prefer the most?

Jan:  K-1; but if I train for MMA with the right people, I think I can be very effective.

Kakutougi:  How and when did you get involved in fight sports?

Jan:  In 1996 when a bunch of navy marines busted up my nightclub and I had to smash the shit out of them!!

Kakutougi:  Wasn’t Mike Bernardo in the navy? That wasn’t how you met him was it?

Jan: Mike (Previous interview here) was in the navy, but he was a physical trainer there. I met him just after he beat Andy. Steve Kalakoda was also in the navy and the boys I smashed were his troops. When he found out from them that I was the one that messed them up, he gave me a call and invited me down to the gym.

Kakutougi:  So since then, did you start to think about a fighting career for yourself, is that still what you want, and are you making any changes in training or your life to keep it that way?

Jan:  I never thought my life will turn out this way. But I can’t complain one bit because the people I have met and friends that I have made all over the world because of fighting…money cannot buy that, and I will hold that close to my heart forever!
I am going to stay and train in Tokyo for a while; I’m starting some Japanese language lessons soon. And I am going to give it all I have. Shit, maybe I’ll become champion and then you are going to have to pay me for interviews (ha ha). 

Kakutougi:  In your career so far, what has been your highlight?

Jan:  There are so many, it is hard to name just one. It must be my first fight in K-1. Coming from nothing and fighting in front of 44,000 people. Wow, that was nice!!!

Kakutougi:  Who has been the toughest guy you have faced?

Jan:  When I won my All African boxing title, my opponent was Monty Hanore from Cameroon. This dude was a silver medallist in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics!! This brother just didn’t want to go down. He fought dirty, did everything to bust me up, burst my eardrum, cut my eye with a head butt, but I finally put him down in the 8th. I still get tired just thinking about it!

Kakutougi:  Is there anyone you would dearly love to rematch?

Jan:  Can I make a list please? Let’s start with Semmy and Jerome. That is good for now....... oh oh oh, let’s not forget my friend Tom Erickson either as I still owe him a good left hook!

Kakutougi:  So you would like to fight Schilt? You are the only one other than Ray Sefo, to drop him in Japan.

Jan:  Oh hell yes! Give me that fight again please!

Kakutougi:  What was it like training with Sefo before the Schilt fight?

Jan:  There are only a few gentlemen in the fight game, and Ray Sefo is one of them! I helped him as best as I could, but learned a lot from him! Everyday was a day of learning, on both sides. But I think I have learned more from him in a short time than I ever have before! When we train there is no bullshit; we focus on a goal and work hard to get it. But out of the gym we are a menace to society! We have great fun and all the boys in the team click like clockwork.

Kakutougi:  What exactly is the relationship now between you and Ray? Are you team-mates?

Jan:  We are both freelance. I will help him whenever he needs me, and the other way around. Yes, you could call us team-mates.

Kakutougi:  So does this mean you are no longer with Steve Kalakoda?

Jan:  No, there comes a time in everyone’s life that you have to move on. My time has come with Steve. I will always be grateful that he brought me into the K-1 and for everything that he taught me. I learned a lot from him, but our time as a team has passed. There is no bad blood between us, just to let you know!

Kakutougi:  Do you still talk to Mike Bernardo?

Jan:  Yeah, we stay in the same city and we both help Virgil in Japan. Mike has opened a gym in Cape Town and I will pop in there once in a will just to give the old baldy some hell!

Kakutougi:  Are you training with Virgil, and what do you think of his future?

Jan:  Like I said, Mike, Kevin Booysen and I will be helping Virgil (Previous interview here). That young man has hands of stone. He proved it in boxing and he is sure going to prove it in the K-1 Max! He is a natural that works like no one that I have ever seen before. Damn, I wish I could be like that!

Kakutougi:  Now, you are in a tournament for the first time in awhile this month. How does it feel to be part of the Hawaiian card?

Jan:  It feels great!! I’m not taking too many clothes to Hawaii because I need space in my suitcase for the K-1 Hawaii belt!

Kakutougi:  You got robbed the last time you fought in the US; do you think the sketchy US judging will play a hand in this fight?

Jan:  They won’t have to, because I’m going to knock my opponents out!

Kakutougi:  What do you know about your opponent for the tournament, The Towering Inferno? (Click here to see the new K-1 Hawaii GP line up.)

Jan: He is BIG, and he can box!

Kakutougi:  Assuming you put his fire out, you will in all likelihood be facing Mighty Mo. He trained in the same gym as you prior to HERO’s, so how would it feel fighting him?

Jan:  If I have to go trough him to get the title, so be it. There can be only one winner. And I bet you he feels the same way.

Kakutougi:  Assuming you make it to the finals, who do you hope to face there?

Jan:  Gary would be nice!!

Kakutougi:  Would you share your prediction on how the main superfight (Remy vs Glaube) and the Heavyweight Title fight (Hari vs Fujimoto) with us?

Jan:  Glaube looks like a million dollars in the gym and I think he will beat Remy. Badr should also beat Fujimoto, but any heavyweight fight is always 50/50. Anyone can knock you out, that is what they train for...

Kakutougi:  A little off topic, but in the Hawaiian GP there are some huge fighters, and some very small guys. Everyone watching K-1 recently often sees 2 meter "giants" that weigh 100-something kilograms. Not so many people are that size though, and I think if they think about fighting you, which most do when watching fighters on TV, I expect they feel you'd have a huge advantage. The question they'll never be able to answer is ... from your corner of the ring is there any disadvantage that you feel with being so big?

Jan:  It works both ways. It is just the fighter that can adjust first to the change that will be victorious. You ask hard questions for this late at night!

Kakutougi:  This time you are fighting in Hawaii, but you have been all over the world, what is your favourite place to fight?

Jan:  Tokyo Dome! Nothing beats Tokyo Dome when it’s packed full of fight hungry fans!

Kakutougi:  What is your mentality like just before a fight?

Jan:  I focus on the fight, but I take it like a normal day. Training is much harder than the actual fight. Well that is how I feel.

Kakutougi:  Mr. Tanikawa once said you are perhaps the most liked fighter in K-1 by all the other fighters. Who are your good friends in K-1?

Jan:  Everyone. Especially Team Sefo and all the crazy boys in it!

Kakutougi:  Are there any fighters in the game right now that you really admire?

Jan:  Peter Aerts. He comes up with something new to knock you out all the time. Ray. Just for the fun he has when he fights, and for his creativity! There are many more.

Kakutougi:  Are there any you don’t really have much time for?

Jan:  Some sportswriters (ha ha).

Kakutougi:  What do you think of the new generation fighters?

Jan:  They are young and fast. I need to find a way to stop them before they get too good.

Kakutougi:  Are you a financially able to be a full-time fighter/trainer, and is it your main focus?

Jan:  I have my company back home that is still growing, and I like the property game. But I want to make everybody that believes in me in the fighting game proud by giving it all I’ve got right now. Now that my mind, team and heart are right for the fight!

Kakutougi:  What are your future plans outside of K-1?

Jan:  I am doing my language course and would like to do more television work. I was told by the TV people here that if I can speak better Japanese, there just might be a big joker and prankster on TV soon!! (Note: Jan recently appeared on the popular Sports Junk program helping out the stars playing beach volleyball.)

Kakutougi:  What is your social life like on the road? Do you date, go clubbing, etc?

Jan:  I am still a man! When you see a beautiful girl, you have to look. Travelling makes dating hard, but we try our best. I’m not getting any younger so need to find a wife and build the nation (ha ha).
The boys hang out a lot, playing pool, watching movies, and going to the gun range in Vegas with “Sniper” Sefo….just normal stuff.

Kakutougi:  What kind of music do you listen to?

Jan:  I can listen to almost anything. It all depends what mood I am in, which is usually a good one (always smiling).

Kakutougi:  Any hobbies?

Jan:  Back home I ride my Harley a lot. I love that! Fast cars and hot girls (ha ha).

Kakutougi:  Do you have a message for your fans?

Jan:  Thanks to my die hard fans who stuck with me through the years. Stick around a little longer because there are some new and improved fireworks that I have planned for the coming years! We are going to have some fun knocking some guys out!!!

Kakutougi:  Well, we’d best let you get back to training, so good luck in Hawaii and thanks for taking time out of your busy schedule to speak with us.

Jan:  Thank you Kakutougi for keeping the sport alive and kicking with your great reviews and interviews. You kick ass in your own way. Like they say, the pen is sometimes mightier than the sword!

Feel free to discuss this interview here.