| 2021 in Glory | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Information | |
| First date | January 30 |
| Last date | October 23 |
| Events | |
| Total events | 3 |
| Fights | |
| Total fights | 29 |
| Title fights | 7 |
The year 2021 was the tenth year in the history of Glory, an international kickboxing promotion. Glory 77: Rotterdam was available on Pay-per-view through Glory and official distribution partnerships with FITE TV, Spike Netherlands, Sport Extra and La Sueur,. [1] [2] [3] [4] Later events were streamed on the Glory Fights Pay-per-view platform. [5] [6]
The following fighters won the GLORY Kickboxing year-end awards for 2021: [7] [8]
| # | Event Title | Date | Arena | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Glory 77: Rotterdam | January 30, 2021 | Rotterdam Ahoy |  Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| 2 | Glory 78: Rotterdam | September 4, 2021 | Rotterdam Ahoy | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
| 3 | Glory: Collision 3 | October 23, 2021 | GelreDome | Arnhem, Netherlands |
| Glory 77: Rotterdam | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | Glory | |||
| Date | January 30, 2021 | |||
| Venue | Rotterdam Ahoy | |||
| City | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |||
| Attendance | None (behind closed doors) | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
Glory 77: Rotterdam was a kickboxing event held by Glory on January 30, 2021 at the Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam, Netherlands. [9]
The main event was initially set to feature the Glory Heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven who was supposed to defend his Glory Heavyweight Championship against his longtime foe Jamal Ben Saddik in a trilogy bout, [10] [11] [12] but Ben Saddik was forced off the card on January 19 due to a back injury. [13] Instead, the event will be headlined by a 4-man heavyweight tournament. Rico Verhoeven will face Hesdy Gerges in the first semi-final of the tournament and Glory newcomer Tarik Khbabez will square off with Levi Rigters in the second semi-final of the tournament. [14] Rigters stepped in on short notice to face Khbabez who was set to make his GLORY debut against Antonio Plazibat. [15] However, Plazibat pulled out two weeks before the event due to an injury sustained during his camp. [16]
The co-main event of the evening featured the Glory light heavyweight champion Artem Vakhitov against the Glory middleweight champion and the interim Glory light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira for the undisputed Glory Light Heavyweight Championship. [17]
Cédric Doumbé fought Murthel Groenhart in a trilogy bout to unify the Glory Welterweight Championship. [18] Groenhart was previously scheduled to face Cedric Doumbe to unify the title at glory 76, but Groenhart was forced off the card with an injury. [19]
The Glory Super Bantamweight champion Tiffany van Soest made her first title defense, of her second title reign, against the #2 ranked Glory super bantamweight Aline Pereira. [20]
In the second light heavyweight bout of the card, the #2 ranked Luis Tavares was scheduled to fight the #4 ranked Donegi Abena. [21]
Former K-1 fighter Raul Cătinaș was expected to make his GLORY debut against Martin Pacas in a heavyweight bout. [22] However, Cătinaș pulled out on January 13 due to testing positive for COVID-19. [23] Promotional newcomer Muhammed Balli stepped in to fight Pacas on just two weeks notice. [24]
A lightweight bout between Itay Gershon and Guerric Billet was scheduled for the preliminary card. [25] However, Gershon was unable to compete due to COVID-19 travel restrictions in Israel, [26] the bout was cancelled .
| Glory 77 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight Class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Rico Verhoeven | def. |  Tarik Khbabez | TKO (Retirement) | 1 | 3:00 | Heavyweight Tournament Final |
| Light Heavyweight 95 kg |  Alex Pereira (ic) | def. |  Artem Vakhitov (c) | Decision (Split) | 5 | 3:00 | For the undisputed Glory Light Heavyweight Championship |
| Welterweight 77 kg |  Cédric Doumbé (c) | def. |  Murthel Groenhart (ic) | KO (Punch) | 2 | 2:52 | For the undisputed Glory Welterweight Championship |
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Tarik Khbabez | def. | Levi Rigters | Decision (Majority) | 3 | 3:00 | Heavyweight Tournament Semi-Finals B |
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Rico Verhoeven | def. | Hesdy Gerges | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | Heavyweight Tournament Semi-Finals A |
| Super Bantamweight 55 kg |  Tiffany van Soest (c) | def. | Aline Pereira | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | For the Glory Super Bantamweight Championship |
| Light Heavyweight 95 kg |  Luis Tavares | def. | Donegi Abena | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Preliminary card | |||||||
| Heavyweight 120 kg |  Martin Pacas | def. | Muhammed Balli | KO (Head Kick and Punches) | 3 | 2:23 | Heavyweight Tournament Reserve Fight |
| Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| Rico Verhoeven | UD | ||||||||
| Hesdy Gerges [28] | 3r. | ||||||||
| Rico Verhoeven | TKO | ||||||||
| Tarik Khbabez | 1r. | ||||||||
| Tarik Khbabez | MD | ||||||||
| Levi Rigters | 3r. | ||||||||
| Glory 78: Rotterdam | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Promotion | Glory |
| Date | September 4, 2021 |
| Venue | Rotterdam Ahoy |
| City | Rotterdam, Netherlands |
Glory 78: Rotterdam was a kickboxing event held by Glory on September 4, 2021 at the Rotterdam Ahoy in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
The main event saw former It's Showtime and K-1 Heavyweight champion Badr Hari in a three-round heavyweight bout against Arkadiusz Wrzosek. [29]
Alex Pereira made his first title defense in a rematch with Artem Vakhitov, following their close fight at Glory 77. [30]
The #1 ranked middleweight Donovan Wisse and the #2 ranked middleweight Yousri Belgaroui fought for the vacant Glory Middleweight Championship. [31]
A lightweight bout between the #2 ranked Tyjani Beztati and the #3 ranked Elvis Gashi served to crown the new Glory Lightweight champion. [32]
Two ranked heavyweights, Antonio Plazibat and Tarik Khbabez, fought at the event. The pair was originally scheduled to fight at GLORY 77, before Plazibat withdrew due to injuries sustained in training. [33]
Former Enfusion heavyweight champion Levi Rigters is faced the #10 ranked Glory heavyweight Tomáš Možný. [34]
Former K-1 fighter Raul Cătinaș made his GLORY debut against the #6 ranked Glory heavyweight Nordine Mahieddine in a heavyweight bout. [35] Cătinaș returned to kickboxing after a 5-year hiatus. [36]
The #2 ranked light heavyweight Luis Tavares was scheduled to fight Sergej Maslobojev. [37] A month before the bout, Maslobojev withdrew due to injury and was replaced by Felipe Micheletti. [38]
It was announced that the #2 ranked welterweight Dmitry Menshikov would fight the #1 ranked Mohamed Mezouari. [39] Menshikov later withdrew from the bout and was replaced by Vedat Hoduk. [40]
Itay Gershon fought Guerric Billet. [41]
| Glory 78 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight Class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Heavyweight 120 kg |  Arkadiusz Wrzosek | def. | Badr Hari | KO (Head Kick) | 2 | 1:30 | |
| Light Heavyweight 95 kg | Artem Vakhitov | def. | Alex Pereira (c) | Decision (Majority) | 5 | 3:00 | For the Glory Light Heavyweight Championship |
| Heavyweight 120 kg |  Antonio Plazibat | def. | Tarik Khbabez | KO (Punches) | 2 | 2:14 | |
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Levi Rigters | def. | Tomáš Možný | TKO (4 Knckdowns Rule) | 3 | 1:02 | |
| Light Heavyweight 95 kg | Luis Tavares | def. | Felipe Micheletti | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Nordine Mahieddine | def. |  Raul Cătinaș | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Welterweight 77 kg | Hamicha | def. |  Vedat Hoduk | TKO (Punch to the Body) | 1 | 1:20 | |
| Superfight Series | |||||||
| Middleweight 84 kg | Donovan Wisse | def. |  Yousri Belgaroui | TKO (Doctor Stoppage) | 3 | 2:10 | For the vacant Glory Middleweight Championship |
| Lightweight 70 kg | Tyjani Beztati | def. | Elvis Gashi | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | For the vacant Glory Lightweight Championship |
| Lightweight 70 kg |  Itay Gershon | - | Guerric Billet | Draw (Split) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Lightweight 70 kg | Mohammed Hendouf | def. | Robson Minoto | TKO (Punch to the Body) | 3 | 1:30 | |
| Glory: Collision 3 | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| Promotion | Glory |
| Date | October 23, 2021 |
| Venue | GelreDome |
| City | Arnhem, Netherlands |
Glory: Collision 3 was an kickboxing event held by Glory on October 23, 2021 at the GelreDome in Arnhem, Netherlands.
A Glory Heavyweight Championship bout between the current champion Rico Verhoeven and promotional newcomer Alistair Overeem (2010 K-1 World Grand Prix Champion) was scheduled as the event headliner. [43] However, Overeem later withdrew due to injuries. [44]
Instead the promotion booked the trilogy fight between Verhoeven and Jamal Ben Saddik. [45] The latter was set to make his comeback against the mandatory challenger for the Glory Heavyweight Championship Benjamin Adegbuyi, [46] [47] [48] who got a new opponent Antonio Plazibat. Plazibat was booked against James McSweeney, who also received a new opponent - Gokhan Saki, who makes his return to kickboxing. [49]
Two fights were added on September 9: a welterweight bout between Alim Nabiev and Troy Jones, as well as a light heavyweight bout between Sergej Maslobojev and Donegi Abena. [50]
Three more fights were added to the card on September 11: a lightweight bout between Stoyan Koprivlenski and Bruno Gazani, a middleweight bout between Ertuğrul Bayrak and Matěj Peňáz, as well as a light heavyweight bout between Michael Duut and John King. [51]
Mohamed Mezouari was scheduled to face Eyevan Danenberg in a welterweight bout. Danenberg returned to kickboxing, following a two-year absence from the sport. [52] Danenberg later withdrew from the bout and was replaced by Maximo Suarez. Suarez later withdrew from the bout as well, and was replaced by Samo Dbili. [53]
| Glory: Collision 3 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight Class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Rico Verhoeven (c) | def. | Jamal Ben Saddik | TKO (Punches) | 4 | 0:56 | For the Glory Heavyweight Championship |
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Gökhan Saki | def. |  James McSweeney | KO (Leg Kicks) | 2 | 2:13 | |
| Welterweight 77 kg | Hamicha | def. | Samuel Dbili | TKO (3 Knockdows Rule) | 1 | 2:27 | |
| Light Heavyweight 95 kg |  Sergej Maslobojev | def. | Donegi Abena | Decision (Split) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Heavyweight 120 kg | Antonio Plazibat | def. | Benjamin Adegbuyi | KO (Punches) | 2 | 0:24 | |
| Light Heavyweight 95 kg | Michael Duut | def. | John King | TKO (Knee to the Body) | 2 | 1:07 | |
| Glory 79 | |||||||
| Welterweight 77 kg |  Alim Nabiev | def. | Troy Jones | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Featherweight 65 kg | Aleksei Ulianov | def. |  Serhiy Adamchuk | Decision (Split) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Middleweight 85 kg | Serkan Ozcaglayan | def. | Matt Baker | TKO (Punches) | 1 | 0:58 | |
| Lightweight 70 kg |  Stoyan Koprivlenski | def. | Bruno Gazani | Decision (Unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
Ricardo Verhoeven is a Dutch professional kickboxer who currently competes in the heavyweight division of GLORY, where he is the reigning Glory Heavyweight Champion. A professional since 2004, he also competed in the K-1, It's Showtime and SUPERKOMBAT promotions. He is currently ranked the number one heavyweight in the world by Combat Press. Verhoeven has been continually ranked as the number one heavyweight kickboxer in the world by Combat Press since September 2014, when the rankings were first established.
Murthel Cyrill Dwyth Groenhart is a Dutch-Surinamese kickboxer and mixed martial artist. Groenhart is the 2012 K-1 World MAX World Championship Tournament Champion and former Glory Welterweight Champion.
Glory, formerly ‘Glory World Series’ is an international combat sports league based in the United Kingdom. It is owned by Pierre Andurand, Yao Capital, Scott Rudmann and other investors.
Sergej Maslobojev; born 22 May 1987), nicknamed 'Kuvalda' ('Sledgehammer'), is a Lithuanian mixed martial artist, boxer and kickboxer, currently signed with GLORY, where he is the former Glory Light Heavyweight champion. He is ranked as the third best light heavyweight in the world by Combat Press as of September 2022, and third best by Beyond Kick as of October 2022.
Carlos Augusto "Guto" Inocente Filho is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and kickboxer currently signed to ONE Championship. A professional MMA competitor since 2005, Inocente formerly competed for the UFC and Strikeforce in MMA.
Benjamin Adekunle Miron Adegbuyi is a Romanian kickboxer and professional boxer. He is a two-time Glory Heavyweight Championship challenger and three-time winner of heavyweight tournament. Adegbuyi is also Superkombat World Grand Prix III 2012 tournament winner and 2018 Glory Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament runner-up. A professional since 2011, he also fought in K-1.
Jamal Ben Saddik is a Belgian-Moroccan professional kickboxer. He is a former two-time Glory Heavyweight Championship challenger and 2018 Glory Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament winner.
Jahfarr Wilnis is a Dutch Surinamese kickboxer, currently competing in the heavyweight division of Glory. He is the 2015 Kunlun Fight Super Heavyweight Tournament winner and the former Enfusion Heavyweight World Champion.
Cédric Doumbé is a Cameroonian-born French professional mixed martial artist and former kickboxer, currently fighting in the Welterweight division of the Professional Fighters League (PFL).
Luis Tavares is a Dutch-Cape Verdean kickboxer. He is the former Enfusion Heavyweight and Super Heavyweight champion.
Antonio Plazibat is a Croatian professional kickboxer, who currently competes in the Heavyweight division of Glory. Plazibat was the 2014 FFC Futures Light Heavyweight tournament winner, the 2017 K-1 WGP Heavyweight World Grand Prix winner and a former K-1 Heavyweight Champion.
Roel Mannaart is a Dutch kickboxer. He currently competes in K-1, where he is the current K-1 Heavyweight Champion. He also competed for Glory.
Tarik Khbabez is a Moroccan kickboxer currently signed to Glory, where he competes in the light heavyweight division and is the current interim Glory Light Heavyweight Champion. He formerly competed SUPERKOMBAT Fighting Championship, having won the SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix Heavyweight Tournament in 2015. Khbabez has also competed in ONE Championship is a former ONE Light Heavyweight Kickboxing world title challenger. In 2021, he was the runner up for the Glory 77: Rotterdam Heavyweight Tournament.
The year 2020 was the ninth year in the history of Glory, an international kickboxing promotion. The year started with Glory 75: Utrecht. Glory 75: Utrecht was broadcast through television agreements with Veronica TV, UFC Fight Pass and other regional channels around the world. Glory 76 was available on pay-per-view.
Levi Rigters is a Dutch kickboxer currently signed with Glory, where he competes in the heavyweight division. He is a former Enfusion Heavyweight Champion and 2020 Glory 76 Heavyweight Tournament winner.
Nordine Mahieddine is an Algerian-French kickboxer, currently competing in the heavyweight division of Glory. He also competed for SUPERKOMBAT Fighting Championship and World Fighting League.
The year 2022 was the eleventh year in the history of Glory, an international kickboxing promotion.
Serkan Özçağlayan is a Turkish-Dutch kickboxer and cousin of Gokhan Saki, currently signed with Glory.
The year 2023 is the 12th year in the history of Glory, an international kickboxing promotion.
Kevin Tariq Osaro is a Nigerian-Dutch professional kickboxer, currently competing in the heavyweight division of Glory. He also competed for OSS Fighters. He is the current interim Glory heavyweight champion. As of 1 November 2023, Osaro is ranked the #2 heavyweight in the world by Beyond Kick.