Nicholas Pettas (original) (raw)

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Actor and martial artist

Nicholas Pettas
Pettas at K-1 Turkey 07
Born (1973-01-23) January 23, 1973 (age 51)Mykonos, Greece
Other names The Blue-Eyed Samurai
Height 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Weight 98 kg (216 lb; 15.4 st)
Division Heavyweight
Style Kyokushin Karate[1]
Stance Orthodox
Fighting out of Tokyo, Japan
Team Team Spirit AE
Rank Black belt in Kyokushin
Years active 1991–2008
Kickboxing record
Total 18
Wins 9
By knockout 8
Losses 9
By knockout 8
Other information
Occupation Martial arts instructor, dojo owner, actor
Notable students Koichi Watanabe, Leona Pettas
Website http://www.nicholaspettas.com/

Nicholas Pettas (born January 23, 1973) is a Greek-Danish karateka, former heavyweight kickboxer and actor, who fought out of Team Spirit AE in Tokyo, Japan. Pettas mainly competed in the promotion K-1 between 1998 and 2007, and was the winner of the K-1 Japan Grand Prix 2001.[2]

Although an undersized heavyweight, Pettas is known for his powerful low kicks and holds notable victories over Yusuke Fujimoto, Nobu Hayashi, Musashi, Gökhan Saki and Péter Varga.

Early life and karate career

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Pettas was born in Mykonos, Greece. Following the death of his father, he moved to Denmark with his mother.

After being beaten up in a street fight when he was fourteen, he decided to join a karate school to learn to defend himself. Not knowing which styles there were, he was introduced to Kyokushin by Michael Mattheson, a friend of his brother Tony. He found himself a new following and needed no more schooling, and so at the age of eighteen decided to leave high school in order to save up money to go to Japan and study with Masutatsu Oyama, the founder of Kyokushin. After getting permission to join the uchi-deshi program, a live-in training of 1000 days, he moved to Japan from Denmark at the age of eighteen. At the age of twenty-one, he completed the vigorous training course to become the second non-Japanese ever to finalize the program (the first being Judd Reid). He was last uchi-deshi of Master Oyama, who died soon after Pettas' graduation.[3]

After his graduation of the programme, he competed in several tournaments and achieved many significant titles and honours such as reaching the title in European Karate Championships and placing 5th and 3rd place in the World Championships, respectively in 1995 and 1997.[4]

Early career (1998–2002)

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Following his successful career in full contact karate, Pettas joined K-1, a Japan-based kickboxing organization. He made his debut against Stefan Leko at K-1 Dream '98 on July 18, 1998, in Nagoya, Japan. Leko was able to dominate Pettas with his superior boxing skills, and knocked him out in the second round.[5]

After a decision loss to Ryuta Noji in March 1999, Pettas returned to K-1 to compete in the eight-man tournament at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Nagoya on July 30, 2000. He stopped fellow karateka Ricky Nickolson with a low kick in the quarter-finals before going on to face Jérôme Le Banner in the semis. The end of the fight was somewhat bizarre. Le Banner knocked Pettas down twice, forcing the referee to stop the match. Upon the second knockdown, Pettas returned to his feet sharply and prepared to punch Le Banner only to stop. Le Banner then replied by striking Pettas with a right hook, knocking him unconscious.[6]

Following this, he lost a unanimous decision to Michael McDonald in a superfight at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Fukuoka on October 9, 2000.[7] He bounced back, however, by using low kicks to KO Peter Varga at K-1 Gladiators 2001 on March 17, 2001.[8]

The peak of Pettas' career came on August 19, 2001, when he won the K-1 Andy Memorial 2001 Japan GP Final at the Tokyo Dome. He finished Yusuke Fujimoto and Nobu Hayashi with his now-famous low kicks in the quarters and semis, respectively, before advancing to the final to take on Musashi. After three rounds the bout was called a draw and went into an extra round to decide the winner, after which Pettas prevailed with a unanimous decision victory.[9][10]

This tournament win qualified him for the 2001 K-1 World Grand Prix, the annual gathering of the best heavyweight kickboxers in the world for a one-night tournament. At the K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Final in Tokyo on December 8, 2001, he was eliminated at the first stage by Alexey Ignashov. Ignashov, the much larger fighter, dominate Pettas before knocking him out with a knee strike in round two.[11]

He returned to the ring on April 21, 2002, against Peter Aerts at K-1 Burning 2002 in Hiroshima, and was knocked out with a knee once again.[12] Then, on June 2, 2002, he fought Sergei Gur at K-1 Survival 2002 in Toyama. During the second round, Pettas hit Gur with a right low kick. Gur checked the kick, breaking Pettas' shin bone. This injury kept Pettas out of competition for 3 years and 4 months.[13]

Return from injury and later career (2005–2008)

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He finally returned to the ring on October 8, 2005, against a young Gökhan Saki at Bushido Europe: Rotterdam Rumble in Rotterdam, Netherlands. He defeated Saki via technical knockout when his corner stopped the fight in the second round. Saki could not provide an answer to the striking arsenal of Pettas. Pettas showed superior technical fighting intelligence than Saki who did not do any damage [14]

In late 2006, Pettas knocked out two opponents and earned a return to K-1. Badr Hari greeted him in his second debut at the annual New Year's Eve martial arts event, K-1 PREMIUM 2006 Dynamite!!, on December 31, 2006. Hari won the fight as Pettas was unable to continue after obtaining a broken arm in the second round.[15]

He then rematched Peter Aerts in a superfight at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2007 in Hong Kong on August 5, 2007. Aerts got the better once again, knocking Pettas out with a spectacular high kick in round two.[16]

After losing his past five fights in K-1, Pettas finally broke this streak with a sensational KO victory over South Korean giant Kim Young-hyun (often anglicised to Younghyun Kim) at K-1 PREMIUM 2007 Dynamite!! on December 31, 2007. Pettas wore down Kim, who stood fifteen inches taller than him, with low kicks before dispatching him with punches forty-one seconds into round two.[17] This KO is to this day an all time record for a small man to stop a big man in stand up striking combat sport. The size difference was 15.3 inches / 39 cm (1.78m/5′10″ vs. 2.17m/7′1.½″). Kim's fellow Korean Choi Hong-man was only 12.9 inches / 33 cm taller than Mighty Mo when he lost via KO in March 2007. In boxing the record stands at 14.9 inches / 38 cm when Randy Davis (1.80m/5′11″) knocked out Tom Payne (2.18m/7′2″) in 1985.

His last fight came on August 9, 2008, when he was eliminated in the quarter-finals of the K-1 World Grand Prix 2008 in Hawaii by Rick Cheek, severing a muscle in his thigh made him pull out and Rick Cheek was awarded the winner by TKO due to referee stoppage.[18]

Pettas currently lives in Tokyo, Japan.[19] He is also an actor, appearing in Japanese cinema and television. Perhaps his best known role is alongside Kimura Takuya in the TV drama Change. From 2008 to 2009, the NHK World show Samurai Spirit was created and produced to fit his personality and the show has won several international prizes for best sports educational shows and best sports documentary. As of 2013, he is co-presenter of the NHK World television show Imagine-nation, with Chiaki Horan.[20] He is currently a Reebok Ambassador and Trainer. With his current success he plans on opening a second Reebok CrossFit in Roppongi.[_citation needed_] He also runs a YouTube channel called Junk Food Japan where he visits restaurants all across Japan.

Kickboxing record

9 wins (8 KOs), 9 losses
Date Result Opponent Event Location Method Round Time Record Notes
August 9, 2008 Loss United States Rick Cheek K-1 World Grand Prix 2008 in Hawaii Honolulu, Hawaii, USA TKO (referee stoppage) 1 1:15 9-9 2008 Hawaii Grand Prix quarter-final.
December 31, 2007 Win South Korea Kim Young-hyun K-1 PREMIUM 2007 Dynamite!! Osaka, Japan KO (right punch) 2 0:41 9-8
August 5, 2007 Loss Netherlands Peter Aerts K-1 World Grand Prix 2007 in Hong Kong Hong Kong KO (right high kick) 2 2:24 8-8
December 31, 2006 Loss Morocco Badr Hari K-1 PREMIUM 2006 Dynamite!! Osaka, Japan TKO (arm injury) 2 1:28 8-7
September 23, 2006 Win Japan Takeshi Onda HEAT 2 Aichi, Japan TKO (corner stoppage) 2 1:00 8-6
August 18, 2006 Win Australia Xplosion Superfight 14 Sydney, Australia KO (punches) 3 - 7-6
October 8, 2005 Win Turkey Gökhan Saki Bushido Europe: Rotterdam Rumble Rotterdam, Netherlands TKO (corner stoppage) 2 - 6-6
June 2, 2002 Loss Belarus Sergei Gur K-1 Survival 2002 Toyama, Japan TKO (leg injury) 2 1:00 5-6
April 21, 2002 Loss Netherlands Peter Aerts K-1 Burning 2002 Hiroshima, Japan KO (knee) 1 2:50 5-5
December 8, 2001 Loss Belarus Alexey Ignashov K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Final Tokyo, Japan KO (right knee) 2 1:21 5-4 2001 K-1 World Grand Prix quarter-final.
August 19, 2001 Win Japan Musashi K-1 Andy Memorial 2001 Japan GP Final Saitama, Japan Extra round decision (unanimous) 4 3:00 5-3 2001 Japan Grand Prix final.
August 19, 2001 Win Japan Nobu Hayashi K-1 Andy Memorial 2001 Japan GP Final Saitama, Japan KO (right low kick) 1 1:26 4-3 2001 Japan Grand Prix semi-final.
August 19, 2001 Win Japan Yusuke Fujimoto K-1 Andy Memorial 2001 Japan GP Final Saitama, Japan KO (right low kick) 1 2:57 3-3 2001 Japan Grand Prix quarter-final.
March 17, 2001 Win Hungary Péter Varga K-1 Gladiators 2001 Yokohama, Japan KO (right low kick) 3 1:39 2-3
October 9, 2000 Loss Canada Michael McDonald K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Fukuoka Nagoya, Japan Decision (unanimous) 3 3:00 1-3
July 30, 2000 Loss France Jérôme Le Banner K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Nagoya Nagoya, Japan KO (left hook) 1 3:00 1-2 2000 Nagoya Grand Prix semi-final.
July 30, 2000 Win England Ricky Nickolson K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Nagoya Nagoya, Japan KO (right low kick) 1 1:27 1-1 2000 Nagoya Grand Prix quarter-final.
July 18, 1998 Loss Germany Stefan Leko K-1 Dream '98 Nagoya, Japan KO (punch) 2 1:09 0-1
Legend: Win Loss Draw/No contest
  1. ^ "Pettas Profile". k-1fightclub.com. Archived from the original on May 13, 2008. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  2. ^ Monty DiPietro. "Nicholas Pettas Wins K-1 Japan GP". K-1. Archived from the original on October 6, 2008. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  3. ^ "Nick Pettas Biography". Archived from the original on October 4, 2011. Retrieved November 27, 2011.
  4. ^ http://www.kyokushin4life.com/forums/retired/1569-nicholas-pettas.html Archived January 28, 2013, at archive.today titles at Kyokushin4life
  5. ^ "K-1 Dream '98 Results". K-1 Official Website.[_permanent dead link_‍]
  6. ^ "K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Nagoya Results". K-1sport.de - Your Source for Everything K-1.
  7. ^ "K-1 World Grand Prix 2000 in Fukuoka Results". K-1sport.de - Your Source for Everything K-1.
  8. ^ "K-1 Gladiators 2001 Results". K-1sport.de - Your Source for Everything K-1.
  9. ^ Monty DiPietro. "World GP 2001 Final". k-1.co.jp. Archived from the original on August 15, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  10. ^ "Nicholas Pettas Wins Japan GP". Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved December 2, 2011.
  11. ^ "K-1 World Grand Prix 2001 Final Results". K-1 Official Website. Archived from the original on February 26, 2011.
  12. ^ "K-1 Burning 2002 Results". K-1sport.de - Your Source for Everything K-1.
  13. ^ "K-1 Survival 2002 Results". K-1sport.de - Your Source for Everything K-1.
  14. ^ Rotterdam Rumble Weigh-In and Press Conference
  15. ^ Monty DiPietro. "Schilt Wins Again, Akiyama Beats Sakuraba at Dynamite '06". k-1.co.jp. Archived from the original on August 15, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  16. ^ "Fujimoto Defends K-1 Asia GP Title in Hong Kong". K-1 grand Prix Website. Archived from the original on October 11, 2007. Retrieved August 22, 2007.
  17. ^ Monty DiPietro. "Sakuraba Still Dynamite!!". k-1.co.jp. Archived from the original on August 15, 2007. Retrieved July 27, 2008.
  18. ^ DiPietro, Monty. "Saki Crowned K-1 USA GP Champ in Hawaii". K-1 Grand Prix Website. Archived from the original on August 8, 2009. Retrieved August 10, 2008.
  19. ^ "Nick Pettas interview". Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved December 1, 2011.
  20. ^ "imagine-nation". NHK. Archived from the original on June 15, 2013. Retrieved May 5, 2013.