The tournament bracket has been announced. The K-1 Openweight Grand Prix is set to take place on Dec. 14, 2024, featuring a lineup of heavyweight fighters from around the world who have now had their matchups revealed.
K-1 World Grand Prix 2024 Final Brackets
In the first quarterfinal bout, South Korea’s Kwon Jangwon will face Italy’s Claudio Istrate. The Italian recently qualified for the tournament after a controversial no-contest bout against Sina Karimian at K-1 World GP 2024 in Osaka. Despite the unusual circumstances, Istrate’s experience earned him a spot in the Grand Prix. Kwon Jangwon has very impressive hand speed for his size.
The second quarterfinal features China’s Liu Ce against a yet-to-be-announced wild card entry. Liu Ce is the current K-1 champion and has been on an impressive run, winning the K-1 30th Anniversary Openweight Tournament in 2023 and successfully defending his division title.
The third quarterfinal match will be between Brazil’s Ariel Machado and Britain’s Rhys Brudenell. Machado secured his place in the tournament by winning the K-1 South American Qualifying Tournament in Brazil, with two knockouts and a decision victory over Guto Inocente. Brudenell, on the other hand, earned his spot with a dominant performance in Italy, scoring three knockout victories and claiming a €20,000 prize, winning the Western European portion.
The final quarterfinal bout sees Curaçaoan-Dutch veteran Errol Zimmerman against Japan’s K-Jee. Zimmerman is a former K-1 World Grand Prix finalist who brings a wealth of experience to the tournament. K-Jee is a former K-1 Cruiserweight Champion, has shown his ability to compete at the highest level, and will be looking to make a statement in the open weight division.
Kickboxers from all over the globe have qualified for this year-end Grand Prix. It all goes down live from the Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan on Dec. 14, 2024.
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