Yuta Kubo Wins K-1 MAX 63 KG. in Japan, K-1 Looks to Grow Division

The landscape of kickboxing's 63 kg. division in Japan changed a bit on Saturday as Yuta Kubo topped the eight man field at the K-1 World MAX 2011 63 kg. Japan Tournament Final.

Although Kubo came up just short of tournament victory in 2010, paying the price for careless defense as he was knocked out by Tetsuya Yamato in the tournament final last July, he was able to surpass the expectations of many and take home the title this time around.

The quarterfinal round of the tournament saw Kubo defeat Kizaemon Saiga by majority decision. Meanwhile, former K-1 Koshien champion Masaaki Noiri used a clear speed advantage to dispatch Krush 63 kg. champion, Ryuji Kajiwara. The bout between Noiri and Kajiwara was decided by a split decision following an extension round. The other side of the bracket saw 2010 champion Tetsuya Yamato sneak past HIROYA, while Koya Urabe took entirely too many leg kicks en route to a decision win over YUKI.

Yuta Kubo continued his march to victory by defeating Masaaki Noiri in the semifinal round. Kubo took a unanimous decision against Noiri, who just moved up from competing in the Krush 60 kg. tournament earlier this year. Koya Urabe was able to top Tetsuya Yamato in their second meeting, as Yamato failed to capitalize on Urabe's swollen lead leg.

Although the final bout betwen Kubo and Urabe was one that many fans were hoping for, the tournament format left many feeling certain in the final result before the bout even began. Koya Urabe plainly took too much damage in his quarterfinal bout to withstand the smart attack of Kubo, who continually went to the lead leg that troubled Urabe. Be that as it may, Urabe was able to score effectively with combination punching even as his mobility was greatly hindered. Admirable as Urabe's performance may have been, t was too little for the Team Dragon fighter to secure victory. A rematch between Kubo and Urabe is something which absolutely needs to occur to provide greater clarification on where things stand at 63 kg.

Moving forward, K-1 is clearly looking to establish a more international presence in the 63 kg. division. The organization is looking to put together a true international tournament and the organization really pushed for talent from around the world to contact them if interested in competing.

Although Saturday's tournament provides a real sense that Japan is fielding some of the top fighters in lighter weight classes, there will continue to be a number of questions regarding the domestic talent as fighters are developed in Europe, other parts of the Asia-Pacific region, and elsewhere.