Xu Yan vs. Nagashima

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Coming off one of the biggest weekends for kickboxing action this year there's a lot to discuss. We've already touched on the biggest stories - Petrosyan winning the MAX title, Chahid v. Direkci ending in controversy, Morosanu defeating Mighty Mo - but there are other important stories you may have missed. Let's take a look at five moments that, while maybe not taking place in the main event, could impact the kickboxing scene in 2010.

1. Raul Catinas and Dzevad Poturak steal the show at K-1 ColliZion. On a night when people were most excited about Morosanu v. Mo, it was Catinas and Poturak who walked away with the hands down fight of the night in an all out war. An absolutely crazy battle that saw both men drop their hands in round 3 to bellow at each other, this may be the fight of the weekend. Catinas pulled off the win, showing why he was invited to the K-1 Europe GP earlier this year, and undoubtedly earning himself a return trip to the big stage.

2. Xu Yan completely derails Nagashima. The most noteworthy thing about this fight is not just that Nagashima lost, it's that he was destroyed and looked terrible in the process. Throughout the brief duration of the fight, Nagashima shows no spark of fire or interest in the fight - watch his face before the fight starts and you see an already defeated fighter. One of the criticisms of Nagashima is that he wants to use K-1 as a launching pad to anime voiceover work. With his performance here, I think it's time to start heading out on those auditions.

3. Freddy Kemayo continues his rise. After an up and down start to his career, Kemayo has been on a hot streak of late. With this beautiful KO victory at ColliZion, he pushes his win streak to 4 straight; in the past two years he's only lost twice, to Ghita and Morosanu. He deserves another crack at K-1, and let's hope he gets in next year.

4. HINATA gets back on track. Maybe it's because he dropped out of the tournament due to injury, or maybe it's because people focused more on the fading star of Yasuhiro Kido, but HINATA's K-1 MAX debut at the Japan GP tournament was a sorely overlooked story. Completely dismantling defending champion Kido, HINATA looked fantastic in his win. Injuries forced him out of the tournament and out of action before a disappointing return loss, but this fight showed he needs to be taken seriously, and helped cement his place as a new fixture of MAX.

5. Sahin Yakut keeps winning for It's Showtime. Yakut has put together a quiet winning streak this year in It's Showtime, taking care of everyone put in front of him. While not yet given the high profile fights of other It's Showtime fighters, Yakut continues to impress. I'd like to see him get a shot at a fighter like Direkci or Chahid next year.