"so many men have fallen, so many more must die"
a couple weeks ago K-1 held their annual world grand prix for the middleweight class. K-1 is a professional striking combat sport; basically, it's kickboxing that welcomes all forms of kickboxing styles in order to see who/which is best. in terms of kickboxing prestige, K-1 might be the top in the world. think of it like the UFC, but instead of complete mixed martial arts, K-1 focuses on mixed kickboxing arts instead.
so im watching the GP because i'm cheering for buakaw, a professional thai boxer. i took muay thai before and would still like to take it in the future; so it's a good idea to watch the top sometimes.
anyway, i'm watching all of the other fights, right? i'm waiting for one to start up when all of a sudden i hear the hare hare yukai song. i couldn't believe it and thought it just had to be a joke. nope. dancers come out and start doing the infamous dance, and a boxer cosplaying as suzumiya haruhi comes out (complete with outfit and boxing gloves). VIDEO HERE
the man's name is yuichiro nagashima, and i think the spectators are paid to praise him as a loveable character. upon later research it turns out his kickboxing record is currently 12-2. wtf. not exactly as good as the best (buakaw is at a staggering 189-21-12 win/loss/draw), but nothing to shrug at.
still, this is a professional sport that shouldn't be taken lightly. it's not fucking WWE. hulk hogan is not going to come out, do a jig, and run wild on you while doing "suck it" gestures. these are serious people who want to win a serious title.
honestly, i was a little happy that yuichiro's opponent was from china (named xu yan). that was a little personal victory for me, aside from china and japan's animosity towards each other. you should've seen the look on xu yan's face; he wanted to fuck yuichiro up bad. how insulting is it to have to fight such a joke of a character? how can yuichiro even look someone in the eye and expect them to respect him? oh japan.
what's even more wtf is the fans in the audience wearing cosplay and using glowsticks. im surprised they weren't attacked by koreans.
from a network perspective, yuichiro is a valuable asset that brings in a demographic that normally doesn't watch. it also helps that K-1 is largely a japanese organization. okay, fine. i concede that, but i still dont think it's worth it to dishonor martial arts like that.
so im watching the GP because i'm cheering for buakaw, a professional thai boxer. i took muay thai before and would still like to take it in the future; so it's a good idea to watch the top sometimes.
anyway, i'm watching all of the other fights, right? i'm waiting for one to start up when all of a sudden i hear the hare hare yukai song. i couldn't believe it and thought it just had to be a joke. nope. dancers come out and start doing the infamous dance, and a boxer cosplaying as suzumiya haruhi comes out (complete with outfit and boxing gloves). VIDEO HERE
the man's name is yuichiro nagashima, and i think the spectators are paid to praise him as a loveable character. upon later research it turns out his kickboxing record is currently 12-2. wtf. not exactly as good as the best (buakaw is at a staggering 189-21-12 win/loss/draw), but nothing to shrug at.
still, this is a professional sport that shouldn't be taken lightly. it's not fucking WWE. hulk hogan is not going to come out, do a jig, and run wild on you while doing "suck it" gestures. these are serious people who want to win a serious title.
honestly, i was a little happy that yuichiro's opponent was from china (named xu yan). that was a little personal victory for me, aside from china and japan's animosity towards each other. you should've seen the look on xu yan's face; he wanted to fuck yuichiro up bad. how insulting is it to have to fight such a joke of a character? how can yuichiro even look someone in the eye and expect them to respect him? oh japan.
what's even more wtf is the fans in the audience wearing cosplay and using glowsticks. im surprised they weren't attacked by koreans.
from a network perspective, yuichiro is a valuable asset that brings in a demographic that normally doesn't watch. it also helps that K-1 is largely a japanese organization. okay, fine. i concede that, but i still dont think it's worth it to dishonor martial arts like that.