- Joined
- Dec 19, 2001
- Messages
- 12,967
- Reaction score
- 1,599
And I have to say that in his prime he was a true force of nature. Before Hoost shattered his forearm he was without a doubt in my mind the hardest hitting HW striker from any sport that I've ever seen. Forget Tyson, Shavers, Foreman, Manhoef, and Badr Hari, JLB's hands were more powerful (he wasn't a better boxer than them, though). When he landed clean with either the straight left or the right hook (I still feel that was his best punch) NO ONE just walked through that, including a young Hunto. Absolute dynamite in dem hands.
But to categorize him as a box-first kickboxer isn't accurate at all. His kicks were amazing, particularly his lead leg low kick that seemed to land with the force of a baseball bat and rendered so many opponents helpless. His strength in the clinch was beyond anyone in K1 and his cardio was severely underrated and allowed him to pursue his aggressive style so effectively.
His chin was nothing great, though far from glass, and with that aggressive style he left himself open to some monster KO's but the man's greatness can not be denied. When he was doing his thing in K1 he was easily the most popular HW in the promotion, too. The Japanese used to go bonkers when he came out to O Fortuna and I can only imagine he made enough cash there that he didn't need to fight as long as he did, he did it because he truly loved it.
IMO, he's not the kickboxing GOAT, but he's Top 5 for sure and in his prime he was more than capable of beating any man that's ever competed in a combat sport. It's important to remember the warriors that made pro kickboxing so entertaining for so long and JLB was the epitome of the all-action kickboxer.
But to categorize him as a box-first kickboxer isn't accurate at all. His kicks were amazing, particularly his lead leg low kick that seemed to land with the force of a baseball bat and rendered so many opponents helpless. His strength in the clinch was beyond anyone in K1 and his cardio was severely underrated and allowed him to pursue his aggressive style so effectively.
His chin was nothing great, though far from glass, and with that aggressive style he left himself open to some monster KO's but the man's greatness can not be denied. When he was doing his thing in K1 he was easily the most popular HW in the promotion, too. The Japanese used to go bonkers when he came out to O Fortuna and I can only imagine he made enough cash there that he didn't need to fight as long as he did, he did it because he truly loved it.
IMO, he's not the kickboxing GOAT, but he's Top 5 for sure and in his prime he was more than capable of beating any man that's ever competed in a combat sport. It's important to remember the warriors that made pro kickboxing so entertaining for so long and JLB was the epitome of the all-action kickboxer.