~ A legend in the making
Perfection - 1 : the quality or state of being perfect: as a: freedom from fault or defect: FLAWLESSNESS b. MATURITY c. the quality or state of being saintly
2 a: an exemplification of supreme excellence b :an unsurpassable degree of accuracy or excellence
3 : the act or process of perfecting.
2009 has been just that for Giorgio Petrosyan. Perfection.
While pushed in his encounter with Andy Souwer more than anyone had pushed him since his fight with Buakaw, it still wasn't even that close. When I watched that fight, I knew, I think we all knew, what the future was going to bring us. Anyone who doubted this was just an irrational critic, a disbeliever of something that was shocking beautiful.
To say Giorgio Petrosyan is to K-1 what Picasso was to modernist art wouldn't be an over-exaggeration. He's that good.
Andy Souwer isn't a fighter that gets beaten often, let alone put down a peg when it comes to ability. Even in these losses, logical circumstances could always be argued to why he lost. Underestimation when it came to Kyshenko, accumulation of damage when it came to Buakaw, too inexperienced when it came to Kraus.
None of those excuses apply to that night in Milan. Andy was beaten, fair and square. Not only beaten - outclassed - made to look like an amateur against a fighter 4 years his junior.
The fight could be considered rather slow, uneventful, with Andy coming forward and Giorgio on his bicycle, picking his blows while Souwer hit air. 3 rounds and it was enough for a Petrosyan win on my scorecards, an extension round later, Souwer saved himself from a knockdown but lost the fight.
Soon after this, FEG came knocking with an invitation in hand, and enter K-1 MAX as Petrosyan's next foray into the big time.
~ The MAX era
At the Final 16, Marcus Oberg replacement and Contender Asia season 1 veteran, Dzhabar Askerov, awaited the young Italian. Dzhabar's big overhand never played a part in this match, as another opponent of Giorgio's lacked the speed or accuracy to land one on his chin. After being made to look sub-par for 6 minutes, the third round began with much of the same, then a Petrosyan trademark knee to the body hit it's mark, and Dzhabar (and the rest of us) had had enough.
The first ever champion of K-1 MAX, Albert Kraus, was set to be Giorgio's next opponent at the drawing for the Final 8. Kraus, known for his boxing prowess, was thought by some to have the ability to take out Petrosyan. But the rest of us knew how it would go down, and it certainly went down as we saw it in our heads. Kraus hitting gloves, getting outworked and overwhelmed by the unbelievable speed unveiled by Petrosyan that night.
~ Yuya Yamamoto - the unlikely opponent
Well, if someone told me back in March that Yuya Yamamoto would be squaring off against Petrosyan in the Final 4, I would have said they should probably watch some more fights (or get their head checked). Lone behold, this is what we get. With a bit of luck, injuries and favourable judging, we can get almost anything in this sport.
While Yuya never earned his qualification, an injury to J-MAX champion Takayuki Kohiruimaki put him out of comisson for his rematch with Korea MAX champion, Chi Bin Lim, at the Final 16. A sustained injury put Hinata, another option, out of the running as well. So that left Yuya, a fighter who competed in several J-MAX tournaments, finding limited success in his attempts until reaching the 2009 finals with Kohi, losing a decision.
A controversial decision win (one I have been vocal about) over Chi Bin Lim put him in the Final 8, and another close decision win (another controversial one in some minds) over all-action Gym Alkmaar product, Gago Drago, put Yuya into the Final 4 to be Japan's lone representative.
Too bad the bracket doesn't favor a Japanese win here.
Does Yuya have a realistic shot at Giorgio Petrosyan? The answer: no. A chance, sure. When Kakuda is staring at Masato's wife in the stands, a ring light could fall onto Giorgio's head, knocking him unconscious and Kakuda declaring a win for Yuya. Yuya could cut Giorgio by some miracle, or an injury could befall the Italian. But from a prediction standpoint, Yuya will be lucky to make it out of the ring without a concussion.
Not to break it down to some sort of hybird K-1 math here, but look at it like this. Drago has some of the sloppiest defense at 70KG, and Yuya basically hit glove for the 2 rounds he won on Drago. He barely hit him clean. Now, if you find it hard to get clean shots on Gago Drago, I wonder how hard you will find it to get clean shots on the fighter with the best defense at the weight? And how about when he is the most precise puncher in the tournament, and the fastest as well?
Get my drift?
~ Potential viruses to The Doctor's antidote
Now I know I've been harping on Giorgio's talent a lot here, and I do think he is as close to perfect as one can be in this sport. Superior entity, maybe, but these fighters I think would have something to say about it:
1. Artur Kyshenko
Yes, I know you may say there is a horrible amount of bias in this one, but Kyshenko is my number one choice for potential threats to Petrosyan's reign of dominance. Sure, you could say Souwer just beat Kyshenko, and Souwer never really came that close to taking out Giorgio. May I remind these people that styles make fights.
Kyshenko is the most physically imposing fighter at the weight. An enormous presence in the ring, combining raw strength and reach with the hardest punches at 70KG.
"Mr. K-1 MAX", "King of Body Blow", whatever you call him, to say Artur Kyshenko doesn't have a realistic shot at putting Giorgio Petrosyan in the dirt if he clipped him, you need to watch more fights.
2. Yodsaenklai Fairtex
No doubt if Petrosyan and Yod ever looked across from each other in the ring it would be a superfight of epic proportions. Yod has probably the most feared rear-leg round kick on the plant next to Cro Cop. An imposing physical presence in the ring, with a great boxing ability to compliment his MuayThai skillset. Many opponents who come to fight Yod in the ring, are already beaten before they face "The Boxing Computer".
Petrosyan vs. Yod would be a superb fight, one I don't even want to call on paper.
3. Buakaw Por. Pramuk
A great test, and a realistic upcoming challenge for Petrosyan, as Buakaw awaits if he can make it 2-1 against Souwer on the 26th. Buakaw, a master of MuayThai technique, a ring general and extremely strong. Petrosyan is very much a Thai-style fighter, and who better to try and beat him at his own game than Buakaw?
A rematch we will most definitely see in the future, if not on the 26th, hopefully this time with a true winner, and no controversial decisions to moan about afterwards.
4. Yoshihiro Sato
"Wait, you mean the Yoshihiro Sato that got beat by Gago Drago, and almost got beaten by Joeri Mes this year?"
Yes, but I'm almost referring to the guy who beat Murat Direkci (who gave Drago one of the worst beatings of his life), became the only man to knock out Buakaw, and was robbed in a decision against Masato last year. This year, that same guy was robbed by Gago Drago, and went to war with Mes at the Final 8, edging a decision. Yeah, THAT Yoshihiro Sato.
While I'm by no means saying Sato would beat Petrosyan, but has a style that could cause some problems. Sato has a great ability to take punishment, has good straight punches with his length, great knees and painful leg kicks, and a relentless (albeit, redundant) style. I say why not? Give Sato his chance, we may be surprised.
5. Andy Souwer
In K-1, aggression can win you fights, especially at lower weight classes. While Andy was picked apart in February, he certainly pushed the fight. Pushing the fight was enough to give Albert Kraus 2 drawn rounds against Petrosyan at the Final 8 on a judge's scorecard. Souwer could do the same.
This is a very likely match at the Final 4, and I'm sure everyone would love to see Souwer win the championship and take on Masato at Dynamite!!. Not saying this will be the case, but stranger things have happened.
~ Final thoughts
This year's MAX Final 4 is pretty much layed out for Giorgio Petrosyan. While I think Souwer is getting the W over Buakaw this year, if Buakaw wins, I think it'll be a close contest between him and Giorgio, while Souwer, not so much.
Giorgio Petrosyan will be crowned the 2009 K-1 World MAX champion, and will take on Masato on New Year's eve.
Can he beat Masato? That's another question for another day.
