The Tour of Shame. “Sapp Time” Is Over

Never before has there been such a decline in combat sports history.

Robert Malcolm Sapp has lost 11 of his last 12 K-1 rules fights, and 13 of his last 15 in Mixed Martial Arts. Combined, that means the man formerly (and laughably, still) known as Bob “The Beast” has won 3 fights in 27 combined, since the start of his fall from grace, compiling what is undoubtedly the worst decline in human history since Nazi Germany’s 1942-43.

And make no mistake; it is decline. “The Black Hulk” Sapp was never a talented prize-fighter, but at the very least, he was a 400lbs 6’6″ muscle man with Herculean strength and more than four minutes of cardio. Sometimes. He beat 4x World Grand Prix champion Ernesto Hoost twice in K-1 rules, and almost pile-drove Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira to defeat under MMA rules in PRIDE FC. He was a huge monster, and the Japanese public loved it. He went on television and trashed the sets, taking mini-dolls of his opponents and biting the heads off, screaming manically. He scared the presenters. The public lapped it up.

Robert Malcolm Sapp became Japan’s Fifth Beatle. John, Paul, George, Ringo, Beast.

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The first Ernesto Hoost battle was outrageous. Hoost is a Dutch kickboxer so tough and skilled that even his nightmares are scared of him. But he was knocking 40′s door down, and for some bizarre reason, decided to brawl with the big monster in order to prove his utter superiority in any aspect of fighting. What resulted was one of K-1′s most entertaining five minute segments, and the stuff that would have made Hoost brood in a darkened room for the following decade while quietly fingering a glock, were he not such a mentally tough man. It remains the blackest hour in an otherwise legendary career, a burn mark on a perfect polished ornate table, a scar on smooth unblemished skin.

I wont even eulogise on Sapp at this point, please just watch and enjoy the video.

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And then a darker hour still. This is the only nightmare out there that isn’t scared of Hoost, and that scares him. “Proof” that the first fight wasn’t simply a fluke, Sapp somehow managed to beat Hoost again after the Dutchman mercilessly punished him for his impunity with leg kicks and crisp boxing, dropping the huge man with a well placed liver punch. But two Hail Mary gorilla swings later, and  Hoost was on the canvas and on dream street. He got to his feet, but never recovered, and despite what some say was a poor stoppage, he ended the fight covered up in the corner taking shots. Premature or not, there cant be too much room for complaint.

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What happened next is well documented, and hardly merits debate here. It was obvious to everyone but Ernesto Hoost that to beat Sapp, you had to circle away from the initial bullrush, let his hundred seconds of full cardio expire, and then pick the big man apart. Mirko Cro Cop was next up, and with a liverkick/left cross combo, he broke Sapp’s orbital bone, released a ton of toxins into his massive body, and made him cry. That was the end of Sapp as a legitimate world beater.

In fact why not. It’s classic footage.
1:50 for the finish.

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OK, I’ll ration myself to one final classic in-ring Sapp moment before moving on to 2012.

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Fast forward to 2012, and what has come to be known as “The Tour of Shame”.

Even well into his now 27-fight decline, the events of this year took things to a whole ‘nother level of catastrophic proportions. Sapp’s 2012 career makes the Titanic look like a successful voyage.

Bob The Beast has fought eight times thus far in 2012, twice in K-1 rules, six times in Mixed Martial Arts, and we’re only halfway through June. That works out at a fight every three and a half weeks or so, and with it the constant worldwide travel between Europe, East Asia and the Americas. He has lost seven of the eight fights, six of them in the first round, and the one he emerged victorious in (K-1 rules) was due to an injury his opponent suffered. Of his seven losses in 2012, six occurred in the first half of the first round.

Prior to that 1-7 skid (six first-round losses), he fought seven times in 2011, going 0-7. Six of those seven losses were in the first round. That means in one-and-a-half years, Sapp is 1-14, with twelve first round losses.

To put it into context; Sapp was once 9 wins, 2 losses in MMA. He is, at time of writing, 11 wins and 15 losses. That’s an overall decline skid of two wins versus thirteen losses, dating back to his win over undersized television presenter Bobby Ologun on the 2007 K-1 Dynamite card. His K-1 / kickboxing record is also 11-15 – it was, in the summer of 2005, a respectable 10 wins and 4 losses, with names such as Ernesto Hoost, Ray Sefo, Remy Bonjasky, Jerome LeBanner and Mirko Cro Cop featured on there.

9-2 to 11-15.

10-4 to 11-5.

Words cannot do further justice. Because along with the actual fights, the Tour of Shame has been accompanied by the truly magnificent (and somewhat tragic) youtube account BobSappTV, on which the man himself self-publicises his forthcoming battles. “The Beast is coming to Australia!” After a first round loss; “The Beast is coming to Slovakia!” Rinse, repeat.

Like I say, words & justice. Enjoy some of the 2012 Tour of Shame moments.

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I’m sure you get the picture. More wacky promotional hype videos can be found at http://youtube.com/Bob SappTV.

Finally, thanks to the face-to-face persuasive powers of my good friends Andrew Leone (11-2 MMA, One FC flyweight, Road FC Bantamweight Grand Prix finalist) and 3rd degree black belt Olavo Abreu, who shared a dressing room with the big man, the McDonalds eating Sapp actually went out and put forth a real fight. For the first time on the Tour of Shame, Sapp went out there and swung punches, reversed a takedown, went for a leglock… and lasted into round 2. It has even been said by some that when the stoppage occurred, that it was premature.

Decide for yourself.

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Is this latest performance a step in the right direction? Or will Sapp continue to flounder in all his forthcoming pre-booked bouts that must be the bane of these promoter’s lives. With pre-signed contracts, Sapp has had carte blanche to roll over time after time, thirty second fight after twenty second fight, and making bank each and every time along the way. The man makes more money in one of these so-called professional bouts than many white collar workers make in a full year of full-time employment.

I’m no hater when it comes to making bank, and I’m the biggest proponent of Sapp’s comic value, but as a fight journalist I have to – occasionally – call a spade a spade. And so it is here; it has to be said that Robert Malcolm Sapp’s world circumnavigation of 2012 is a verifiable Tour of Shame.

Twitter @DanielFletcher