Who are the top 10 K-1 Heavyweights?

[chosin]

Who are the Top 10 K-1 heavyweights?

It's impossible to give any definitive ranking because at this level any guy can beat any guy on a given night, but for fun, here's my attempt...

1. Stefan Leko: quick and explosive with perhaps the most balanced attack; his only weakness may be his size; he hasn't lost since Mark Hunt in 2002 and has relatively recent wins over quality opponents such as Bonjansky, Ignashov, Filho, Aerts.

2. CroCop: maybe number one but hasn't fought in K-1 for nearly a year.

3. Ignashov: i think he needs to be a little more aggressive, but i'd imagine he's the one fighter no one wants to fight.

4. LeBanner: Will he finally win the GP Final? It had to be a little painful for him watching this year's shallow lineup.

5. Hoost: still the man until some of the kids start beating him. I'm amazed that he won his 4 GPs after age 32.

6. Bonjansky: he won the GP and looked good doing it, but he didn't have to fight any elite fighters--Graham, Abidi, Musashi???

7. Mark Hunt: never been KO'd--is that correct?

8. Carter Williams: Can he be a perennial elite K-1 fighter? Let's have a rematch with Sefo.

9. Peter Aerts: he got by Ignashov, but was too worn out to beat Musashi. Prior to the Ignashov win, i think it's been awhile since he beat a top-caliber opponent. Still, he's tough, smart and has great heart.

10. Martin Holm: smaller and underrated, but he's got the best knees besides Bonjansky.

I suppose Bob Sapp belongs somewhere around 6 or 7, but because he's a brawler and not a kickboxer or karate fighter, i forgot him. But he's beaten Hoost twice and might have beat Bonjansky if he hadn't DQ'd himself. i think other fighters have learned how to beat him after watching the mistakes Hoost made, which led to his losses, and witnessing CroCop destroy him. i'd like to see a Sapp-LeBanner, Sapp-Hunt, Sapp-Ignashov...i know a lot of people don't like him in K-1, and i can understand why, but i think any of those match-ups would be great to watch.

[fist]

1. Cro Cop
2. LeBanner
3. Hunt
4. Leko
5. Hoost
6. Bonjasky
7. Ignashov
8. Aerts
9. Carter Williams
10. Martin Holm
11.-15. Sefo, Fujimoto, Filho, Bernardo, Sapp( I don`t consider Sapp as K-1 fighter but wth, I can`t avoid him)

[Lefty]

1)leko
2)mikro (could be #1, but has been inactive in k-1)
3)le banner
4)hunt
5)hoost
6)ignashov
7)carter williams
8)dewy cooper
9)aerts
10)bojaski (only because of his gp win)

[kai]

1.Bonjasky
2.Leko
3.Mirko
4.Musashi
5.Sefo
6.Willians
7.Hoost
8.Aerts
9.Fujimoto
10.Bernardo

[Shamrocked]

1. Jerome Le Banner (healthy Jerome that is)
2. Mirko Cro Cop (if he's focused on K-1)
3. Ernesto Hoost (he's not a 4 time GP winner for nothing)
4. Mark Hunt (almost impossible to knock out)
5. Stefan Leko (and he's not even in his prime yet!)
6. Remy Bonjasky (only the GP champ for lack of competition)
7. Peter Aerts (he's almost done, but the legend lives on)
8. Ray Sefo (again, a healthy Ray is tough to beat)
9. Alexy Ignashov (the future of K-1 along with Bonjasky and....)
10. Carter Williams (will own K-1 in two years, or maybe sooner if Le Banner can't get healthy and Cro Cop doesn't return)

[forescore]

I love Cro Cop to death, but I doubt seeing him in K-1 again anytime soon. He seems to have found a real niche with MMA.

[chosin]

i've found Japanese fans to be very smart and objective, so while they would love to see a Japanese K-1 heavyweight among the elite, they realize Musashi isn't going to be the guy.

He got the decision over Aerts, but Aerts had little recovery time after going 4 rounds with Ignashov. Meanwhile, Musashi might as well had a bye considering how Sefo fought(or didn't fight).

Unless these two questionable wins are counted, Musashi has ZERO wins against any elite K-1 fighters. Moreover, Musashi rarely fights any quality opponents. The last tough opponent he fought was LeBanner in the first round of the 2002 GP Final, and LeBanner destroyed him.

You have to go back about a year and a half for another quality opponent, Hoost, April 2001, who also beat Musashi. In the GP Final 2000, Musashi only lasted 1.38 before Sefo knocked him out.

He seems content to be king of the Japanese heavyweights. Musashi probably wouldn't qualify for the GP Final if not for the special All-Japanese tournament. i don't dislike him, and i believe he tries hard, but he simply lacks the strength, power, speed and technique to match up with the big boys.

[Shamrocked]

i've found Japanese fans to be very smart and objective, so while they would love to see a Japanese K-1 heavyweight among the elite, they realize Musashi isn't going to be the guy.

He got the decision over Aerts, but Aerts had little recovery time after going 4 rounds with Ignashov. Meanwhile, Musashi might as well had a bye considering how Sefo fought(or didn't fight).

Unless these two questionable wins are counted, Musashi has ZERO wins against any elite K-1 fighters. Moreover, Musashi rarely fights any quality opponents. The last tough opponent he fought was LeBanner in the first round of the 2002 GP Final, and LeBanner destroyed him.

You have to go back about a year and a half for another quality opponent, Hoost, April 2001, who also beat Musashi. In the GP Final 2000, Musashi only lasted 1.38 before Sefo knocked him out.

He seems content to be king of the Japanese heavyweights. Musashi probably wouldn't qualify for the GP Final if not for the special All-Japanese tournament. i don't dislike him, and i believe he tries hard, but he simply lacks the strength, power, speed and technique to match up with the big boys.I couldn't have put any of that better myself. Especially the last paragraph.

[kai]

Musashi is good but Masato is Japan's best.

[littlechamp1]

Mirko hasn't fought in K1 in a while. It is a completely different game. You can't rank him because of his perfomance in MMA. His K1 record wasn't that great 4-4-0 I believe.

[Brock8]

1. LeBanner
2. Leko
3. Ignashov
4. CroCop
5. Hunt
6. Carter Williams
7. Bonjasky
8. Hoost
9. Aerts
10. Martin Holm

If K-1 had greater depth in fighters, old-timers Hoost and Aerts wouldn't still be hanging around.

[forescore]

Mirko hasn't fought in K1 in a while. It is a completely different game. You can't rank him because of his perfomance in MMA. His K1 record wasn't that great 4-4-0 I believe.

you obviously have no clue what you're talking about. Mirko's K-1 record is 20-7-1.

[MKB_Iida]

1. Bob Sapp
Carter Williams
LeBanner
Ignashov
Hunt
Leko
Bonjasky
Filho
Sefo
Bernardo

How can Sapp not make anyone's top 10 on this list? It doesn't matter if you don't like his style. He's a K-1 heavyweight, like it or not, and the only fighter to beat him is CroCop, and it's no shame to admit that.

Sapp is a phenomenal athlete. He had no previous fighting experience, and yet he defeated the 4-time champ Hoost, twice. There are plenty of big, strong guys who can't fight, (Montanha Silva, Jan Nortje, Bjorn Bregy) but Sapp has proved he's not one of them. Sure, he doesn't have good technique, but he's trained only at football until recently. Most of these fighters--Hoost, Aerts, Sefo, LeBanner...have been practicing since their teens or earlier. So despite Sapp's lack of experience, he's learning and getting better. He's a smart guy, too, and maybe he'll be a smart fighter. We'll see if he continues to study the art, or if his early success fools him into thinking his size and power will carry him, which it won't.

[Vittel]

How can Sapp not make anyone's top 10 on this list? It doesn't matter if you don't like his style. He's a K-1 heavyweight, like it or not, and the only fighter to beat him is CroCop, and it's no shame to admit that.

Sapp is a phenomenal athlete. He had no previous fighting experience, and yet he defeated the 4-time champ Hoost, twice. There are plenty of big, strong guys who can't fight, (Montanha Silva, Jan Nortje, Bjorn Bregy) but Sapp has proved he's not one of them. Sure, he doesn't have good technique, but he's trained only at football until recently. Most of these fighters--Hoost, Aerts, Sefo, LeBanner...have been practicing since their teens or earlier. So despite Sapp's lack of experience, he's learning and getting better. He's a smart guy, too, and maybe he'll be a smart fighter. We'll see if he continues to study the art, or if his early success fools him into thinking his size and power will carry him, which it won't.

I have to agree, good point...