Muay Thai title against Ergin Solmaz in Amsterdam on November 12, 1994, before going back to Japan to fight Glen Parker at K-1 Legend. He knocked Parker out with a knee in round one. On March 3, 1995, he defeated Kirkwood Walker via right low kick knockout in round three at the K-1 Grand Prix '95 Opening Battle which qualified him for the K-1 Grand Prix '95 on May 4. In the quarter-finals, he dispatched Japanese karateka Toshiyuki Atokawa with ease, knocking him out with punches in the first round. He went up against Ernesto Hoost for the third time in the semis in what was another close fight. After three rounds, the judges called it a draw and so it went to an extra round, after which Aerts took the unanimous decision (10-9, 10–9, 10–9). In the final, Aerts came up against hard-hitting Frenchman Jérôme Le Banner who had knocked out his two opponents in the run-up to the final. The fight did not last long, as Aerts finished Le Banner with a body shot in round one to become the K-1 World Grand Prix Champion for the second year running. Aerts then beat Michael Thompson by KO in a superfight at the K-3 Grand Prix '95 in Nagoya on July 16, 1997 before beating Hubert Numrich by points for the WMTA World Super Heavyweight Muay Thai Championship in Amsterdam on October 28, 1995. He ended the year with a forty-second KO win over Mike Bernardo, the hard hitting South African known for his punching power, at K-1 Hercules on December 9, 1995. This would be the first of six meetings between the men from 1995 to 1998, in what became one of the biggest feuds in K-1 history. 1996–1997: Rivalry with Mike Bernardo, and split from Chakuriki On March 10, 1996, Aerts knocked out Jean-Claude Leuyer with a highlight-reel high kick at the K-1 Grand Prix '96 Opening Battle in Yokohama to qualify for the 1996 K-1 World Grand Prix. At the K-1 Grand Prix '96 on May 6, he came up against Mike Bernardo again at the quarter-final stage. Already a dominant name in K-1 and the reigning Grand Prix champion, Aerts was the favorite to win the 1996 tournament and as he had demolished Bernardo just six months earlier, he was expected to do the same this time. It was not to be, however, and after