Friday, August 10, 2007
Battle at Bellagio Press Conference: Mastov Replaces Absent Arrab; Superfight Matchups Shift
By Mike Afromowitz (
[email protected]) http://www.k-1usa.net/_images/news/large/431_lg.jpgUnable to obtain a travel visa from his homeland, Germany’s Chalid “Die Faust” Arrab has been scratched from Saturday’s K-1 “World Grand Prix 2007 in Las Vegas” mega-card where he had been scheduled to square off with two-time K-1 tournament champion, “Mighty Mo” Siligia, it was announced during the final press conference at the event’s host venue, Bellagio, on Thursday. Israel’s Ariel Mastov has been appointed to fill the vacant slot on the card’s Superfight lineup which, due to Arrab’s absence, has been amended to match Mastov with Petr Vondracek.
Vondracek’s original Superfight opponent, four-time K-1 tournament champion, Stefan “Blitz” Leko, will battle Siligia. The Superfight bout between superstar Ray “Sugarfoot” Sefo and Bjorn “The Rock” Bregy will proceed as planned.
Former United States Armed Forces heavyweight boxing champion and undefeated kickboxer, “Savage” Rick Cheek, has been touted as the odds favorite (9 to 5) to conquer the eight-man, single-elimination Bellagio tournament, it was also revealed on Thursday. Cheek will face fellow American, Imani “The Juggernaut” Lee, in the tournament’s quarterfinal round.
“It feels great to represent The United States and I’m keeping the title here,” said Cheek, a 30-year-old native of Rohnert Park, California. “I’m gonna win this title for The U.S. Sorry, Imani, but that’s just how I’m feeling.”
"I’m here. This is my turn and we’re gonna make it happen,” offered Lee as his outlook for Saturday. Last August, Lee nearly pulled off a major upset after scoring an early knockdown on K-1 superstar, Michael “The Black Sniper” McDonald, during their semifinal round tournament matchup in Las Vegas. A point was deducted from Lee’s scorecard, however, after the referee had declared that the heavy-handed puncher hit McDonald again immediately after the knockdown. After the penalty was declared, McDonald turned the tides on his opponent and ousted Lee from the event by way of a judges’ decision. “Because of the punch that never landed, they took a point away from me and I was robbed of a victory. This year there won’t be any question marks.”
Despite being a newcomer to the K-1 North America circuit, Muay Thai stylist, Esh’Chadar Brown Ton, appeared in complete command as he addressed the media from the Bellagio ballroom dais. The quarterfinal round of the tournament will pit the 30-year-old resident of Dallas, Texas against 23-year-old Zabit Samedov of Belarus.
Brown Ton used his time at the podium to explain the meaning of his unique nickname, “The Dispossessor,” which was given to him by his father years ago. “I had the personality as a kid where I was determined to do a lot of different things, in particular sports that I competed in – football and track. I would compete very hard, sometimes too hard,” he explained in a soft-spoken, but confident tone of voice. “The Dispossessor basically means to take possession of another and deliver it to my own possession.”
New Orleans, Louisiana native, Patrick Barry, gave those on hand a summary of his grueling training camp for the event that pits him opposite Sweden’s Rickard Nordstrand.
“I’ve always been a firm believer that, in order to be the best, you have to train with the best,” said Barry, who recently acquired the coaching services of the sport’s all-time greatest competitor, “Mr. Perfect” Ernesto Hoost. Barry spent the last several months preparing for Saturday’s affair at Hoost’s kickboxing gym in Holland. “All the training I did over there, all the work that I put in for this, makes Saturday night easy.”
Tickets for “K-1 World Grand Prix 2007 in Las Vegas,” priced at $300, $200, $100, and $50, are on sale at Bellagio’s box office (888-488-7111) and on www.k-1usa.net, the official website of K-1 North America.
Bellagio Ballroom doors will open for “K-1 World Grand Prix 2007 in Las Vegas” at 5 PM Pacific Standard Time on Saturday and the card’s first preliminary bout will begin at 5:30 PM. The eight-man tournament will commence at 7 PM.