What's your opinion on this ? Is he a good or a bad thing for K1 ? Some argue and say that the guy's got no talent and that it's all about his huge ****ing size. Personally , i don't like Schilt. But i wouldn't go as far as to say that he's some sort of totally , talentless hack or a poor excuse of a fighter... If you look at all his fights (under K1 rules that is...) , you'll just witness a huge guy who uses the same modus operandi over and over again. But hey it works. He uses the same technic , he keeps his calm , he's not fast but he's accurate (he's faster than Valuev though) and say what you want but his kicks and knees are ****ing dangerous. He's not just a gigantic can. But is it safe to label him as a ATG of K1 ?...or is it an insult to achievements of the likes of Aerts , Hoost , Hug (and every other grand prix winners)... He was average in mma (though he still won king of pancrase at one point in his career)...but he's quasi untouchable under K1 and it seems to me like there's just no surprises anymore. Kinda like Tiger woods in golf or federer in tennis (though fed's career isn't looking too good right now).. Anyway , i don't know when he'll decide to retire , but he's here to stay right now. and no one seems to be able to beat this guy. it's becoming too predictable. We all remember what a prime Ignashov did under muay thai but Iggy is pretty much a shadow of his former self. (been for a long time actually , one of the biggest waste of talent in kickboxing history)... JLB did great in his latest fight vs schilt but was too injured to continue...
This is a good post. I've been thinking along these lines a bit lately. I seem to be biased against Tim Sylvia whom I feel wins with many of the same advantages you've listed for Schilt, but for some reason I give Schilt a pass. He keeps winning - so more power to him. It will make some of the other fighters up their game in order to defeat him. Or perhaps a young unknown fighter will explode onto the scene and surprise everyone. Or maybe Randy Couture will switch to K1.:yep :yep :yep I'll have to wait for time to tell the tale on were Schilt falls in the ATG rankings. I've always respected him after watching him come up through early Pancrase and a few later UFC or Pride events. He seems to have rediscovered his niche in K1.
How can you fault a man for his size and strength? I think Schilt will achieve more in K-1 than any other fighter in history when he is done. He will probably win his 4th consecutive K-1 WGP, as it seems no one can beat him.
Lat time I was watching K1 Bonjasky was considered 'the man' and Schilt was a mediocre MMA fighter :yep nayway, I havent watched K-1 for ages...not really sure why :think
See Valuev, Sapp and now Schilt. As it turns out, sometimes size is more important than just technique. Go figure.
In MMA there ARE ways to nullify a height advantage for more than a few moments though. Boxing and kickboxing, the best you can do is get in, land what you can and either stay in the pocket or get decimated from the outside.. Big problem with boxing and height is that a tall fighter can simply clinch and force a break, giving him a huge advantage when it comes to controlling the distance, which is 1/3 of fighting in itself. Kick boxing, a guy can get inside and well, he is screwed because a guy like Schlit can dominate in the clinch with knees. Barely needed to lift a leg to hit an opponent in the head.. I think kick boxers are more at a disadvantage than boxers if knees are allowed. It leaves for a very limited space where the smaller fighter has a distinct advantage.
Watch how mediocre and tentative he looks when faced with a fighter his size, I believe that answers the question. He's all about size.
It really sucks that Ignashov never realized his talent. He could have been an ATG. I think that Schilt's size holds a key role in his success, but he does have talent. He's done beter than that massive Korean guy for example.
If you're all about size and do the same technique over and over, you don't ko someone with a spinning back kick.
Quite frankly he's just too gigantic to handle. The size difference is impossible to overcome. K-1 needs to focus on their 100kg HW division, that is where the good fights can be made. I don't think too highly of Schilt. When he faced a guy of his size with decent skills in Iggy, he got epicly destoryed.
Exactly, Schilt is very talented although much of his advantage is size he still has solid technique.
Schilt is pretty good. He uses his massive size to full advantage. He gets maximum leverage on his kicks. His spinning back kick is the ****. Choi Hong Man beat him, though, so he might have a problem handling other big guys. He also doesn't punch very hard. Neither does Bonjasky for that matter.
