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View Full Version : Sato over K1 MAX en Masato (verslag persconferentie)



marcelt
13-04-2009, 17:48
Sato’s Press Conference

Translation of Sato's press conference from few days ago. He said some pretty interesting stuff about K1 organisation and Masato's retirement

"At last year's party after Dynamite!! I told Masato that "I'll be going after your head next year too, so best regards." And he told me that "I'm not going to be fighting next year cause I'll be working as a producer." I thought he meant it as a joke, but he was being awfully soft so I'm not predicted that he'll be retiring.

So I'm not too surprised. After winning the championships after such great fights, maybe he thought that he couldn't do any better. So it can't be helped if he lost the fire.

He also told me that he's "taking [his] winnings and quitting", but my friends have been vexed. They been saying that "we can't stand back now." I've always thought that my friends have been fighting with me as well, so I can't"
On Masato's plans to fight a superfight in July and a match against the 2009 champion at Dynamite!!
"That's disrespectful to the 16 fighters who are participating in the world GP. It's setting up a system in which the new champion is going to get the right to challenge Masato. I think that's nonsense.

Masato is a strategist. We're going to have to fight twice in one day to become champion, then have to step up on the ring again on New Years Eve. It's much different from fighting once in July and having the time to condition oneself for a fight in New Years Eve.

We're putting our lives on the line by fighting through the tournament. And the only real champion is the newest one. The 2008 champion is just one of the past champions and nothing more. I don't want anyone to think that the 2009 champion is just the man who challenges Masato.

The 2009 champion has to be the one who accepts Masato's challenge. If not, K-1 itself will lose face and K-1 will break down.

I'm planning on fighting in Nagoya on December 23rd, but I will consider fighting Masato. For me time has stopped on October 1st of last year. No matter who I meet, they talk about my fight with Masato. So I want to (fight Masato again and) start the clock again.

When I become the world champion, then I will look down on Masato and say "Alright, I will let the former champion fight me". MAX started with Masato, but it can't end with him. Every fighter here is of the top level, and there is no other event in the world that can put together such cards. If these fighters keep doing events, people will definitely still continue to buy tickets, that's what I believe. "
"It's not a matter of superceding Masato. Right now K-1MAX is a religion centered around Masato. Masato is correct in everything that he does. Even when Masato is imprudent in his press conferences or doesn't participate in the closing ceremonies, people say that he's acting professional. I want to sink my own ideas about professionalism into K-1.

I don't need to become the next Masato. There is nothing to be gained from a system where there is only one top dog.

If the lack of one star leads to the end of a competition, that's not a sport, but a show. Baseball isn't going to be any less popular if Ichiro retires. Right now people are watching professionals in entertainment, but I want people to see us as professionals in an athletic competition.

There is a baseball player called Ibata Hirokazu, and he's not flashy but he's really popular in Aichi (where Sato comes from). So much that there isn't a single person who doesn't know of him. That's cause people knoq how to watch baseball. Right now, people are interested in seeing people swinging around their fists, and of course, that might lead to a great fight, but there are also things like combinations and the timing of counters.

When drunk guys are watching K-1 at the bar's TV, they're screaming "GO!" and such. But I want to get them to say "Wow, Sato's kicks to the rear leg is timed perfectly". That's the world I'm dreaming of.

I think [Masato's retirement is] a huge opportunity. Because now people will be forced to see the other fighters. With Masato retiring, the martial arts world is going to be devastated, but there is hope even in that."
On the current roster for the Final 16.
"I thought they gathered some great faces last year, but that was just for the Final 8. I feel exactly the same about this year's Final 16. This is the best roster ever, and looking to be the greatest contest yet. No event of this scale exists anywhere else.

Being the best out of all this is not an easy feat by any means, but I'm definitely going to be the champ. Drago is a strong fighter, and physically he's champion material. But I think there are gaps in his technique, and I'm going to expose them in our fight."

kentaro
13-04-2009, 18:23
Vind het wel een beetje een zeikerd die Sato....
Sato voelde zich altijd al achtergesteld tegenover Masato door de K-1 en de japanse pers, tewijl andere vechters zoals 'kid' Yamamoto juist berijpen en respecteren waarom Masato stopt en de druk die hij altijd had als 'poster boy' van de K-1 MAX al die jaren in Japan.

Anderson
13-04-2009, 18:31
Volgens mij heb je maar een stukje gelezen.