''K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Final'' was a

kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sports, combat sport focused on kicking and punch (strike), punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is pract ...

event promoted by the K-1. The event was held at the

Tokyo Dome is an indoor stadium in Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan. It was designed as a baseball stadium following its predecessor, Korakuen Stadium. Construction on the stadium began on May 16, 1985, and it opened on March 17, 1988. It was built on the site of th ...

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and List of cities in Japan, largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, ...

on Saturday, December 8, 2001, in front of 65,000 spectators. It was the ninth K-1 Grand Prix final, involving eight of the world's top fighters, with all bouts fought under K-1 Rules (100 kg/156-220 lbs). The eight finalists had almost all qualified by winning preliminary tournaments (with the exception of Peter Aerts who was a runner up), while two additional fighters were invited as reserve fighters in case of any injuries (for more detail on this see bulleted list below). As well as tournament bouts there was also the aforementioned 'Reserve Fight' to decide who would be a replacement for any injured competition fighters, fought under K-1 Rules, and a 'Super Fight' between local middleweight star

Masato Masato (written: , , , , , , , or ) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: *Masato (kickboxer) (born 1979), Japanese former welterweight kickboxer, won K-1 WORLD MAX kickboxing tournament in 2003, 2008 * Masato ...

and Noel Soares, fought under K-1 MAX Rules (70 kg/152 lbs). In total there were twelve fighters at the event, representing eleven countries. The tournament winner was

Mark Hunt Mark Richard Hunt (born 23 March 1974) is a New Zealand former mixed martial artist and kickboxer of Samoan descent, currently living in Sydney, Australia. Hunt competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) until 2018 and was the winn ...

who defeated Francisco Filho in the final by extra round

unanimous decision A unanimous decision (UD) is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and other sports involving striking and submission in which all three judges agree on which fighter ...

, for his first and so far only K-1 World Grand Prix final victory. Both him and Francisco Filho even reaching the final was seen as a huge upset, helped in part by all the competition favourites

Ernesto Hoost Ernesto Frits Hoost (born 11 July 1965) is a Dutch retired kickboxer. A four-time K-1 World Champion, Hoost is considered to be one of the greatest kickboxers of all time. Debuting in 1993 at the K-1 World Grand Prix 1993, where he came just on ...

Jérôme Le Banner Jérôme Philippe Le Banner (; born December 26, 1972) is a French kickboxer, mixed martial artist, and professional wrestler. Le Banner fought for most of his career in K-1 and became known for his aggressive fighting style and knockout power. ...

and

Peter Aerts Peter Aerts (born 25 October 1970) is a Dutch semi-retired kickboxer. Known for his devastating high kicks, which earned him the nickname "The Dutch Lumberjack", he is widely considered to be one of the greatest heavyweight kickboxers of all time ...

being knocked out at the Quarter Final stage. Qualifiers - Finalists *

K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Las Vegas This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

runner up *

K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Osaka This is a list of events held and scheduled by the K-1, a kickboxing promotion based in Hong Kong. The first event, K-1 Sanctuary I, took place on March 30, 1993 at Kōrakuen Hall in Tokyo, Japan. 2023 events 2022 events 2021 events ...

winner * Francisco Filho - K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Fukuoka Repechage A winner *

- K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Melbourne winner *

- K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Fukuoka Repechage B winner * Alexey Ignashov - K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Nagoya winner *

Stefan Leko Stefan Leko (born June 3, 1974) is a German heavyweight kickboxer. He is the current WKA Super-Heavyweight world champion in kickboxing, and former Muay Thai world heavyweight champion and Kickboxing world super-heavyweight champion, WMTA, WKN, ...

winner *

Nicholas Pettas Nicholas Pettas (born January 23, 1973, in Mykonos) is a Greek-Danish karateka, former heavyweight kickboxer and actor, who fought out of Team Spirit AE in Tokyo, Japan. Pettas mainly competed in the promotion K-1 between 1998 and 2007, and wa ...

- K-1 Andy Memorial 2001 Japan GP Final winner * Qualifiers - Reservists *

Mike Bernardo Michael Shawn Bernardo (28 July 1969 – 14 February 2012) was a South African kickboxer and boxer from Cape Town. Bernardo was known as Beru-chan in Japan, where he has taken part in K-1 World GPs since 1994. He holds notable wins ove ...

- K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Fukuoka Repechage B semi finalist *

Adam Watt Adam Keith Watt (born 10 November 1967) is an Australian former boxer and kickboxer. He has studied kickboxing, Seido-kaikan karate, and boxing. His nickname was "Lights Out" because of his high level karate and boxing skills, and one punch k ...

- K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 in Fukuoka Repechage B runner up

K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Final Tournament

* Ernesto Hoost was injured after his match with Stefan Leko. As the Reserve Fight winner Mike Bernardo was also injured, Stefan Leko would take his place in the Semi Finals

Results

References

External links

K-1 Official WebsiteK-1sport.de - Your Source for Everything K-1
{{2001 K-1 Events K-1 events 2001 in kickboxing Kickboxing in Japan Sports competitions in Tokyo

K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Final Tournament

Results

See also

References

External links