2003. Finally, the land of the rising sun is on top of its own K-1 mountain.

Japan's very own Kobayashi Masato won the K-1 World MAX tournament final. The 70kg version of the world famous Grand Prix was created in 2002, on the heels of Masato’s rise to fame and rivalries with his fellow countrymen.

The MAX (Middleweight Artistic eXtreme) brought excitement to the fans with high paced, action-packed fights in a weight class full of elite fighters. The win saw Masato go from very well known kickboxer to superstar in his home country, after the fans waited for a full decade to finally get its K-1 World GP champion in the big boys ranks.

2004

25-year old Masato was rightfully riding the wave in 2004, confident in his abilities to continue his accomplishments in the years ahead and the retire as a legend of the sport. Cute plans, but kickboxing loves nothing more than to ruin happy endings. The party was coming to an end, almost as soon as it started.

Eight fighters qualified for the World Tournament Final, including Masato. Other favourites were his two rivals Kohiruimaki Takayuki, and the inaugural champion Albert Kraus of Holland. Mike Zambidis, from Greece, had a fair shot at the gold, having KO’d Kraus and acquitting himself well in a close decision loss to Masato in 2003.

Alongside this group, Muay Thai standout John Wayne Parr was widely recognized as being a strong threat to Masato's crown.

The last three fighters were relatively unknown and unproven on kickboxing's biggest stage.

Jadamba Naratungalag came so close to upsetting Albert Kraus in the qualifying match that K-1 decided to grant him a wild card for the tournament. Russia's Shamil Gaidarbekov earned his place in the tournament. Last but not least, Thailand had its representative, as always.

After sending a Lumpinee stadium champion who lost in the in 2002 final to Albert Kraus (Kaolan Kaovichit) and a Rajadamnern stadium champion whom Masato KO’d in 2003 semi-finals (Sakhetdao KT Gym) they sent a former Omnoi stadium champion to compete in the 2004 tournament.