Tetsuya Yamato was not the most technical fighter in the competition but he was certainly the toughest as he rebounded from a first round knockdown against the highly favored Yuta Kubo to capture the K-1 63 kg Japan title at Yoyogi Stadium 1st in Tokyo, Japan.
Yamato was downed with a straight left early in the first round but was able to stand, survive and turn the fight around. In the final exchange in the last round, both fighters threw simultaneous left hands, both connecting flush. Yamato staggered backwards but kept his feet, Kubo fell to the canvas and was not able to stand giving the Yamato the Hollywood movie style win and the title.