Sergei Kharitonov to Make K-1 Debut

by Fraser Coffeen on Nov 28, 2009 9:46 AM EST

Promoted to the front page from the FanPosts by Luke Thomas.

Over at HeadKickLegend, we have news of Sergei Kharitonov's upcoming K-1 debut.

Chalid "Die Faust" Arrab has dropped out of the reserve fight against Daniel Ghita at the Grand Prix. Replacing will be Kharitonov. Best known for his run in PRIDE, Kharitonov is an extremely odd choice for this fight, as this will be not only his K-1 debut, but also his first fight in a professional kickboxing organization.

Kharitonov has been mostly on the sidelines for the past few years, competing only 3 times since the end of PRIDE and going 2-1, all in MMA competition. Of note, one of those fights is a win over fellow MMA star turned kickboxer Alistair Overeem, who he defeated at a Hero's event in 2007. The news of Kharitonov making a move to kicboxing is completely unexpected, and needless to say, he's diving in against a very tough opponent.

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Comments

I hate losing these great MMA prospects to be sacrificed in K1 bouts.

for all intents and purposes, just consider all my posts as works of satire.

by Bandaka on Nov 28, 2009 10:43 AM EST reply actions

Agreed.

Sergei can probably hold his own in K-1, but entering the GP for his debut on short notice seems almost foolish. I think he has the skills to be a top 10 heavyweight in MMA. Before he got Monson’ed in April, his only losses were to Lil’ Nog, Alistair (which he avenged with a 1st round KO, which is the last time Overeem lost), and Aleks Emelianenko… not too shabby.

I think his Sambo base would translate well into the cage also. If he came to the UFC, it would be one of my favorite signings in quite some time. He would be great in the UFC.

by TDITZ on Nov 28, 2009 10:51 AM EST up reply actions