The single ‘strangest story’ in kickboxing history must be Bob ‘The Beast’ Sapp’s two underdog TKO wins against one of the best strikers in the world.
Back in the late 1990s to early 2000s, two men stood supreme as the consensus best kickboxers in the world – Mirko ‘Cro Cop’ Filipovic, and Ernesto ‘Mr. Perfect’ Hoost.
Hoost had bested ‘Cro Cop’ three times between 1996 and 2000; however, ahead of their fourth showdown at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2002 Final Elimination, the Croatian pulled out with injury… What happened next, nobody saw coming.
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Bob Sapp vs Ernesto Hoost dubbed the ‘strangest story’ in kickboxing
Lumbering in as the late-notice replacement was Bob ‘The Beast’ Sapp, who had only two professional kickboxing bouts on his record (one win, one loss) – surely this would be an easy win for 86-16-1 former champion Hoost, right? Wrong.
Despite weighing over 100lbs more than Hoost and with essentially no kickboxing experience compared to the then three-time world champion, Sapp was supremely confident that he’d score the underdog upset.
On October 5, 2002, the two finally locked horns, with Sapp immediately rushing across the ring and using his massive frame to pressure Hoost up against the ropes before unloading a hailstorm of punches.
Sapp’s combinations had opened one, two – too many cuts around Hoost’s face for the ringside physician, who waved off the bout between rounds for what was the single greatest upset that the promotion had ever seen.
While Sapp was declared the winner via first-round TKO, Hoost argued that ‘The Beast’ had committed multiple fouls that the official had missed; the promotion moved to book the rematch for December.
The most shocking upset in kickboxing history continues
The Dutch superstar was determined to exact revenge and made a strong start in the rematch, dropping Sapp early into the first round with a slick combination to the body.
Yet lightning struck again in the second, with Sapp cornering Hoost and unleashing a flurry of clubbing punches around his guard – the former champion eventually crumbled under the pressure, with Sapp scoring a second consecutive TKO win.
Ironically, Sapp would later withdraw from that same tournament, citing exhaustion and a broken hand; he was replaced by Hoost who went on to win the finals.
In the years that followed, Hoost would continue to claim world championship success, while Sapp slumped to 12-19 as a professional kickboxer – which only served to highlight the insanity that was his two wins over ‘Mr. Perfect’.
As aptly noted by Glory Kickboxing: “To this day, kickboxing fans still don’t know how Sapp beat Hoost twice.
“Many consider Bob Sapp amongst the worst fighters to ever compete in a Grand Prix tournament, and many consider Hoost to be amongst the best. Yet Sapp still beat Hoost… twice.”