K-1 World Grand Prix Final Might Still Happen!

Wednesday, 19 October 2011 14:45

Written by Dave Walsh

After all of last week's deluge of K-1 news it was clear that a lot of shuffling was going on backstage within K-1. The company's financial woes are documented, but it was clear that there were people looking to "bail out" K-1 and begin working to rebuild the company's reputation with fighters and fans alike. Everyone involved understands this will take time and work, so it looks like the Final 16 might be called off. Initially there were rumors of the show being pushed back, then cancelled. Last night Mike Kogan made a remark on Twitter about hearing the Final 16 is potentially pushed back a few weeks, but he did not seem overly confident in it happening.

All throughout this there have been talks of K-1 still looking to put on an event in December, and it appears that it is not only true, but could be the Final 8. According to Anil Dubar, he was told to keep himself and Daniel Ghita in good shape as there will be a K-1 announcement by the end of this week, also that there will be a focus on the Final 8 due to time constraints. "They are not dead yet," he states, going on to talk about payments and a future for K-1, which includes still crowning a World Grand Prix Champion in 2011. Daniel Ghita looks to be invited right into the Final 8.

As for who would participate in the Final 8, the names being thrown around are heavy hitters already; Badr Hari, Daniel Ghita, Peter Aerts and Hesdy Gerges so far, with others being negotiated. It looks like they are going to book only the best of the best for the Final 8 and if they can, make a truly memorable event.

The question then comes if Peter Aerts will participate in the K-1 World Grand Prix, as we've reported he has a fight set up on December 11th. According to Mourad Bouzidi Mr. K-1 will indeed fight in Japan on December 11th, but if K-1 were to organize a Final 8 and invite him to participate, he'd fight in that instead in a heartbeat. Good news all around. [source]

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