Fight Archives: Bob Sapp gets TKOd by kickboxer half his size

Size doesn’t always matter.

Since we’re now in an era of freakshow fights, I thought I’d chime in on the conversation. Here we have a David vs. Goliath showdown you probably didn’t think you’d want to see.

Bob Sapp is a legend in his own right. In his heyday, the man compiled a total of 64 fights in kickboxing and MMA combined. He’s also infamous for participating in numerous open-weight matchups.

Here he is in his second pro fight at PRIDE 21 in 2002 against Kiyoshi Tamura. With a whopping 140-pound edge over his opponent, Sapp saw fit to throw his weight around. Literally.

Sapp seems to thrive in the undying demand of a good spectacle, which is probably why he decided to take on more open weight bouts. In 2011, he was matched up against Hungarian fighter Tivadar Kunkli in a kickboxing bout in Budapest.

Like usual, Sapp’s obvious game plan was to use his 100-pound weight advantage in his favor. As soon as the fight started, he immediately clinched up for some dirty boxing.

Kunkli, however, was having none of it. He broke off the tie-up and landed a head kick to send the big man down to the canvas. Sapp continued to play his game, but Kunkli now has him figured out.

This seemed to have upset Sapp who then switched to full-on pro-wrestling mode after eating an elbow to the face. It angered the home crowd as cans began flying into the ring.

Sapp re-engages the tie-up, only to eat another hard elbow to the face. He drops to the canvas and is unable to continue. Fight over.

At 47 years old, Sapp continues to fight on. In 2018, he notched his first MMA win in over eight years. Sideshows and controversies from recent years aside, all respect to the man and his body of work.