Shemsi Beqiri

Last updated
Shemsi Beqiri
Shemsi-0336 (cropped).jpg
Born (1986-05-03) 3 May 1986 (age 38)
Vitina, SAP Kosovo, SFR Yugoslavia
Nationality Swiss
Height1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Weight70.0 kg (154.3 lb; 11.02 st)
Division Lightweight
Welterweight
Middleweight
Style Kickboxing   Muay Thai
Fighting out of Basel, Switzerland
TeamSuperPro Sportcenter Basel (2010–present)[ citation needed ]
TrainerDennis Krauweel (2010–present)
[ citation needed ]
Years active2002–present
Kickboxing record
Total96
Wins87
By knockout32
Losses9
By knockout1
Draws0
Other information
Website https://www.teambeqiri.ch/
Last updated on: 24 January 2017

Shemsi Beqiri (born 3 May 1986) is a Swiss kickboxer who competes in the middleweight division.

Contents

Early life

A Swiss citizen, Beqiri was born to Kosovar Albanian parents in Vitina, SFR Yugoslavia (now Kosovo) on May 3, 1986, and, at the age of five, he relocated with his family to Basel, Switzerland where he soon began training in karate and taekwondo. He took up kickboxing and Muay Thai when he was sixteen.[ citation needed ] He was naturalized as a Swiss citizen.[ year needed ] His three brothers, Hysni, Ilir and Sabedin were also professional kickboxers.[ citation needed ]. Hysni and Sabedin continue to fight but Ilir died from leukaemia early in 2015 at 21 years old.

Career

Early career (2002–2008)

Shemsi Beqiri began his career at Super Pro Basel and moved to Superpro Sportcenter Basel in 2002, fighting as a lightweight. Two years after beginning fighting, he won his first title by defeating Jetmir Sula via decision to win the World Professional Kickboxing Council (WPKC) Swiss -63.5 kg/140 lb Muay Thai Championship in his hometown of Basel, Switzerland on May 8, 2004. He then travelled to Novara, Italy just three weeks later to challenge Alessandro Conca for the WPKC European -63.5 kg/140 lb International Kickboxing [ broken anchor ] title, and beat the local fighter on points after seven, two-minute rounds to become the European champion.[ citation needed ]

Beqiri ended 2004 by becoming the Swiss champion for the second time, knocking out Dardan Zeqiri in round three to take the Schweizerische Kick-Boxing Verbände (SKBV) Swiss -63.5 kg/140 lb Kickboxing belt on November 13, 2004. After accumulating an undefeated record fighting on the European kickboxing and Muay Thai circuit, his first loss came at the hands of Giorgio Petrosyan in an Muay Thai Association (MTA) European -65 kg/143 lb title fight in Gorizia, Italy on February 26, 2005.[ citation needed ]

On February 18, 2006, Beqiri entered the S-1 Muay Thai tournament held in Basel. He KO'd Zyber Rudaj in the quarter-finals and then beat Steve Neumann on points in the semis. However, he sustained an injury in the match with Neumann and was unable to compete in the final. He faced another set-back when he dropped a decision to Mirko Vorkapic in Nova Gorica, Slovenia on June 10, 2006, but he bounced back with a lengthy win streak that culminated in winning the World Fighters Council (WFC) European Welterweight (-67 kg/147 lb) K-1 rules [ broken anchor ] title from Andrej Bruhl in Basel on December 15, 2007.[ citation needed ]

He made the first defence of his WFC European title on August 2, 2008, when he bested Hubert Romankiewitz over three rounds in Basel.[ citation needed ]

Arrival on the world stage (2008–2012)

Having become two-time European champion, Beqiri was given the chance to fight for a world title on November 15, 2008, taking on Vahidin Tufekčić in Nova Gorica with the WKA World Welterweight (-67 kg/147 lb) Kickboxing Championship on the line. He proved that he belonged on the world stage by sending the Bosnian to the canvas in the first round before stopping him with a low kick in the second to take the belt.

Shortly thereafter, Beqiri began his transition to middleweight, long seen as kickboxing's deepest weight class. He faced the toughest test of his career on March 14, 2009, by taking on Şahin Yakut at Oktagon presents: It's Showtime 2009 in Milan, Italy. He was easily out-gunned by the Turkish veteran, receiving a standing eight count from the referee just seconds in the bout before being finished off with a right hook shortly after. [1] [2] He was able to return to the winner's column in impressive fashion by taking decision wins over Bartosz Kościelniak, Youssef Ouahnini and Ramil Karmacaev, respectively, in one night to win the -72.5 kg/160 lb tournament at Human's Fight Night III in Hamburg, Germany on September 13, 2009. Beqiri then attempted to make it two tournament wins on the trot by entering the TK2 World MAX 2009 in Aix-en-Provence, France on October 10, 2009, but was beaten on points by Jeremy Sportouch at the quarter-final stage. Before the year was done, he added two more world titles to his mantlepiece, knocking out familiar foe Jimmy Eimers in four rounds in Ulm, Germany on November 1, 2009, to take the World Full Contact Association (WFCA) World Junior Middleweight (-69.8 kg/154 lb) Thaiboxing belt followed by a points win over Mike's Gym fighter Giga Chikadze on December 19, 2009, in Zurich, Switzerland to be crowned the WFC World Middleweight (-72.5 kg/160 lb) Muay Thai Champion.

2010 was a busy and successful year for Beqiri as he competed in four one-night tournaments and went 10–2 over the course of the twelve months. He also began training under Dutchman Dennis Krauweel at the SuperPro Sportcenter Basel around this time after switching for the Golden Dragon Gym.[ citation needed ] He kicked the year off on January 30, 2010, at the Klash I -72.5 kg/160 lb Tournament in Zutphen, Netherlands where he knocked out Adem Bozkurt at the opening stage. In the semi-finals, he went up against Arian Vatnikaj and dropped him in round one en route to a decisive points victory. Then, in the tournament final, Beqiri edged out Alviar Lima over three rounds to take the crown. In his next outing, Beqiri captured the WKA World Middleweight (-72.5 kg/159 lb) Kickboxing title with a decision win over Diogo Calado in Basel on March 27, 2010. He followed this up with a third-round TKO of Dardan Morina in the quarter-finals of the Superfighters 8 Man Tournament in Frankfurt, Germany on April 17, 2010. Despite securing his place in the semis, he was unable to compete due to a broken nose and was replaced by Davit Kiria. [3] [4]

On September 5, 2010, Beqiri returned to defend his crown at Human's Fight Night IV in Hamburg. Having taken a unanimous decision victory over Rosario Presti in the quarter-finals, he then exited the competition when he lost by the same margin to local fighter Dima Weimer in what was the fight of the tournament. [5] In his fourth and final tournament run of the year, Beqiri finished as runner-up at the Klash II -72.5 kg/160 lb Tournament in Sindelfingen, Germany on November 27, 2010. He was victorious on points over Turkish duo Erkan Varol and Tevfik Suçu to reach the final where he lost a close split decision to Faldir Chahbari.

After rising up the rankings in 2010, Beqiri began his 2011 campaign by taking a big step up in class to face Yoshihiro Sato, who had finished as runner-up in the K-1 World MAX 2010 Tournament just two months before, at the Krush First Generation King Tournaments ~Round.2~ in Tokyo, Japan on January 9, 2011. Sato took a controversial split decision (30-28, 29–28, 28–29), but many considered the fight a moral victory for the 24-year-old Beqiri who was more than twenty places below Sato in the world rankings and fighting outside Europe for the first time. [6] [7] He didn't return to the ring until September 10, 2011, when he participated in the four-man, SuperPro Fight Night II -70 kg/154 lb tournament in Basel. After his original semi-finals opponent Farid Villaume pulled out, Beqiri instead took on Philippe Salmon and dropped the Frenchman in round one before taking the judges verdict to advance to the final where he came up against Rachid Belani. He had no problems with the aging Moroccan and won by decision to take the tournament prize money of 20,000. [8]

Beqiri became a five-time world champion on March 3, 2012, when he outpointed Hirono Yuu over five rounds for the WFCA World Junior Middleweight (-69.8 kg/154 lb) K-1 title at SuperPro Fight Night III in Basel.

Glory (2012–present)

Although contracts with top promotions such as K-1 and It's Showtime seemed to have eluded Beqiri, he was given the chance to fight at the highest level when signed with the newly founded Glory organization in April 2012 and was immediately entered into the 2012 Lightweight Slam tournament, made up of sixteen of the world's best 70 kg/154 lb kickfighters. [9] [10] He was given a rematch with Yoshihiro Sato at the tournament's opening round, held in Stockholm, Sweden at Glory 1: Stockholm - 2012 Lightweight Slam First 16 on May 26, 2012, and took his revenge by beating the Japanese fighter by split decision in an action-packed fight. [11] This win helped Beqiri move up into the top ten in the world rankings for the first time in his career, coming in at #10. [12] [13]

Staying active between Glory tournament bouts, he defeated Steeve Valente via decision at SuperPro Fight Night IV on September 22, 2012, in Basel to win the SuperPro Fight Night -70 kg/154 lb Championship. [14] [15]

He was drawn against Davit Kiria in the quarter-finals of the 2012 Glory tournament at Glory 3: Rome - 2012 Lightweight Slam Final 8 on November 3, 2012, in Rome, Italy [16] but exited the tournament early when he lost a split decision after a competitive fight. [17] [18] Despite coming back from the Glory tournament empty-handed, Beqiri proved himself to be amongst the middleweight elite and moved up to #9 in the world rankings in December 2012. [19]

Beqiri lost to Robin van Roosmalen by unanimous decision in a back-and-forth fight at Glory 10: Los Angeles in Ontario, California, United States on September 28, 2013. [20] [21] [22] [23]

He was scheduled to face Ky Hollenbeck in the tournament reserve match at Glory 12: New York - Lightweight World Championship Tournament in New York City, New York, US on November 23, 2013 [24] but withdrew for undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Warren Stevelmans. [25]

Shemsi Beqiri and Andy Souwer were set to fight at SuperPro Fight Night VI in Basel on January 25, 2014, but Souwer withdrew due to a bout of appendicitis and was replaced by Foad Sadeghi. [26] Beqiri defeated Sadeghi on points. [27]

He was also expected to fight Murthel Groenhart on the Glory 14: Zagreb undercard in Zagreb, Croatia on March 8, 2014 [28] withdrew due to injuries sustained in a brawl and was replaced by Teo Mikelić. [29]

Personal life

In February 2013, Beqiri was convicted for assault by a Basel court. In an incident in January 2012, he had hit a man in the face and went on to kick him when he went to the ground, after Beqiri's brother had first attacked the victim, also a kickboxer, with pepper spray. Beqiri's conviction made headlines in Swiss media in the context of a scandal involving the canton of Zurich employing him as personal trainer for a juvenile offender convicted for serious bodily harm. [30] After Beqiri's conviction became public knowledge, his expulsion from the Swiss Muay Thai Federation was announced. Beqiri contradicted this, saying that he had planned leave the federation regardless and that the notice of expulsion was motivated by the federation taking sides against him in his ongoing rivalry with his former trainer, Portuguese kickboxer Paulo Balicha. [31]

On 24 February 2014, Beqiri's gym was raided by Balicha and about twenty masked and partly armed associates. Beqiri claimed that Balicha attacked him with brass knuckles and that he struck him down in self-defense. In the resulting brawl, partly fought with baseball bats, six people were injured, including Beqiri who sustained fractures in his hand and nose. Balicha was arrested and after forensic analysis at his Diamond Gym, a number of other attackers were also identified and taken into custody. [32] Beqiri's injuries sustained in the attack prevented him from fighting Murthel Groenhart at Glory 14: Zagreb . [33]

Championships and awards

Kickboxing

Kickboxing record

Kickboxing record
85 wins (32 KOs), 9 losses, 0 draws
DateResultOpponentEventLocationMethodRoundTime
2018-09-29Win Flag of Denmark.svg Mohammed El-MirSuperpro Fight Night 8 [34] Basel, Switzerland Decision33:00
SPFN World Junior Middleweight (-72.5 kg/154 lb) K-1 Championship.
2018-07-28Win Flag of Serbia.svg Vanja DumitrovSuperpro Fight Night Uskana 1 [35] Kičevo, Macedonia KO13:00
2016-12-03Win Flag of Turkey.svg Erkan Varol Mix Fight Gala 20 Frankfurt, Germany Decision33:00
2016-03-12Win Flag of the Netherlands.svg William DienderSuperpro Fight Night 7 [36] Basel, Switzerland Decision33:00
Wins the SPFN World Junior Middleweight (-72.5 kg/154 lb) K-1 Championship.
2014-11-30Win Flag of Russia.svg Alexander SurzhkoW5 Crossroad of Times, Semi Finals [37] Bratislava, Slovakia Decision33:00
Could not advance to the final due to a hand injury.
2014-01-24Win Flag of Iran.svg Foad SadeghiSuperPro Fight Night 6 Basel, Switzerland Decision53:00
Wins the WFCA World Junior Middleweight (-72.5 kg/154 lb) K-1 Championship.
2013-09-28Loss Flag of the Netherlands.svg Robin van Roosmalen Glory 10: Los Angeles Ontario, California, USA Decision (unanimous)33:00
2012-11-03Loss Flag of Georgia.svg Davit Kiria Glory 3: Rome - 70 kg Slam Tournament, Quarter Finals Rome, Italy Decision (split)33:00
2012-09-22Win Flag of France.svg Steeve ValenteSuperPro Fight Night 4 Basel, Switzerland Decision53:00
Wins the WFCA World Junior Middleweight (-70.00 kg/154 lb) K-1 Championship.
2012-05-26Win Flag of Japan.svg Yoshihiro Sato Glory 1: Stockholm - 70 kg Slam Tournament, First Round Stockholm, Sweden Decision (split)33:00
2012-03-03Win Flag of Japan.svg Hirono YuuSuperPro Fight Night 3 Basel, Switzerland Decision53:00
Wins the WFCA World Junior Middleweight (-69.85 kg/154 lb) K-1 Championship.
2011-09-10Win Flag of Morocco.svg Rachid BelaniSuperPro Fight Night 2, Final Basel, Switzerland Decision (unanimous)33:00
Wins the SuperPro Fight Night II -70 kg/154 lb Tournament Championship.
2011-09-10Win Flag of France.svg Philippe SalmonSuperPro Fight Night 2, Semi Final Basel, Switzerland Decision (unanimous)33:00
2011-01-09Loss Flag of Japan.svg Yoshihiro Sato Krush First Generation King Tournaments ~Round.2~ Tokyo, Japan Decision (split)33:00
2010-11-27Loss Flag of Morocco.svg Faldir Chahbari Mix Fight Gala 11: Klash II Tournament, Final Sindelfingen, Germany Decision (split)33:00
For the Klash II -72.5 kg/160 lb Tournament Championship.
2010-11-27Win Flag of Turkey.svg Tevfik SuçuMix Fight Gala 11: Klash II Tournament, Semi Finals Sindelfingen, Germany Decision33:00
2010-11-27Win Flag of Turkey.svg Erkan Varol Mix Fight Gala 11: Klash II Tournament, Quarter Finals Sindelfingen, Germany Decision33:00
2010-10-09Win Flag of Germany.svg Alexander SchmittMix Fight Gala 10 Darmstadt, Germany Decision33:00
2010-09-05Loss Flag of Germany.svg Dima WeimerHuman's Fight Night IV, Semi Finals Hamburg, Germany Decision (unanimous)33:00
2010-09-05Win Flag of Italy.svg Rosario PrestiHuman's Fight Night IV, Quarter Finals Hamburg, Germany Decision (unanimous)33:00
2010-06-12Win Flag of Poland.svg Łukasz SzulcBeast of the East 2 Gdańsk, Poland Decision33:00
2010-04-17Win Flag of Germany.svg Dardan MorinaSuperfighters 8 Man Tournament, Quarter Finals Frankfurt, Germany KO3
Despite reaching the semi-finals, Beqiri withdrew from tournament due to a broken nose.
2010-03-27Win Flag of Portugal.svg Diogo Calado WKA Gala Night Basel, Switzerland Decision53:00
Wins the WKA World Middleweight (-72.5 kg/159.8 lb) Kickboxing Championship.
2010-01-30Win Flag of Cape Verde.svg Alviar Lima Beast of the East: Klash I Tournament, Final Zutphen, Netherlands Decision33:00
Wins the Klash I -72.5 kg/160 lb Tournament Championship.
2010-01-30Win Flag of Albania.svg Arian VatnikajBeast of the East: Klash I Tournament, Semi Finals Zutphen, Netherlands Decision33:00
2010-01-30Win Flag of Turkey.svg Adem BozkurtBeast of the East: Klash I Tournament, Quarter Finals Zutphen, Netherlands KO3
2009-12-19Win Flag of Georgia.svg Giga Chikadze WFC Fight Night Zürich, Switzerland Decision53:00
Wins the WFC World Middleweight (-72.5 kg/160 lb) Muay Thai Championship.
2009-12-05Win Flag of Turkey.svg Tevfik SucuMix Fight Gala 9 Darmstadt, Germany Decision33:00
2009-11-21Win Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg Vedad MulaomerovićGladiators Fight Night Pristina, Kosovo TKO (corner stoppage)12:59
2009-11-01Win Flag of the Netherlands.svg Jimmy EimersHype FC Ulm, Germany KO4
Wins the WFCA World Junior Middleweight (-69.85 kg/154 lb) Thaiboxing Championship.
2009-10-10Loss Flag of France.svg Jeremy SportouchTK2 World MAX 2009, Quarter Finals Aix-en-Provence, France Decision (split)32:00
2009-09-13Win Flag of Russia.svg Ramil KarmacaevHuman's Fight Night III, Final Hamburg, Germany Decision43:00
Wins the Human's Fight Night III -72.5 kg/160 lb Tournament Championship.
2009-09-13Win Flag of Morocco.svg Youssef OuahniniHuman's Fight Night III, Semi Finals Hamburg, Germany Decision33:00
2009-09-13Win Flag of Poland.svg Bartosz KościelniakHuman's Fight Night III, Quarter Finals Hamburg, Germany Decision33:00
2009-03-14Loss Flag of Turkey.svg Şahin Yakut Oktagon presents: It's Showtime 2009 Milan, Italy TKO (right hook)10:45
2008-11-30Win Flag of Germany.svg Thilo SchneiderThe Contender Qualifikation Basel, Switzerland Decision33:00
2008-11-15Win Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg Vahidin TufekčićWKA Champions Night Nova Gorica, Slovenia KO (right low kick)2
Wins the WKA World Welterweight (-67 kg/147.7 lb) Kickboxing Championship.
2008-10-04Win Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Mikel ColajK-1 Fight Night Sursee, Switzerland Decision33:00
2008-08-02Win Flag of Germany.svg Hubert RomankiewitzSwiss Las Vegas 3 Basel, Switzerland Decision33:00
Retains the WFC European Welterweight (-67 kg/147 lb) K-1 Championship.
2008-07-06Win Flag of the Netherlands.svg Jimmy EimersUltimate Glory 8 Nijmegen, Netherlands Decision33:00
2007-12-15Win Flag of Russia.svg Andrej BrühlSwiss Las Vegas 2 Basel, Switzerland Decision33:00
Wins the WFC European Welterweight (-67 kg/147 lb) K-1 Championship.
2007-10-06Win Flag of Croatia.svg Nikola BožićSatori Gladiatorium Nemesis Nova Gorica, Slovenia Decision4
2007-06-03Win Flag of Romania.svg Viorel RădoiNight of Revenge Luzern, Switzerland KO3
2007-05-12Win Flag of Germany.svg Steve Neumann Swiss Las Vegas 1 Basel, Switzerland Decision33:00
2007-01-27Win Flag of the Netherlands.svg Adil Ait AliRayong Dreamfights Giengen, Germany Decision53:00
2006-06-10Loss Flag of Slovenia.svg Mirko VorkapićMittel Europe Tournament Nova Gorica, Slovenia Decision33:00
2006-02-18Win Flag of Germany.svg Steve Neumann S-1 Tournament, Semi Finals Basel, Switzerland Decision33:00
Despite reaching the final, Beqiri withdrew from tournament due to injury.
2006-02-18Win Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Zyber RudajS-1 Tournament, Quarter Finals Basel, Switzerland KO (right cross)3
2005-02-26Loss Flag of Italy.svg Giorgio Petrosyan Muay Thai A. Gotti Gorizia, Italy Decision5
For the MTA European -65 kg/143 lb Championship.
2004-11-13Win Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Dardan ZeqiriSwiss Kickboxing Finals Switzerland KO3
Wins the SKBV Swiss -63.5 kg/140 lb Kickboxing Championship.
2004-10-30Win Flag of Thailand.svg Nungjakkawan WindyThe Night of the Gladiators Kaiserslautern, Germany Decision53:00
2004-05-29Win Flag of Italy.svg Alessandro ConcaThe Night of the Dragons Novara, Italy Decision72:00
Wins the WPKC European -63.5 kg/140 lb Kickboxing Championship.
2004-05-08Win Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Jetmir SulaFight of the Titans 2 Basel, Switzerland Decision53:00
Wins the WPKC Swiss -63.5 kg/140 lb Muay Thai Championship.
2000-00-00Win Flag of Germany.svg Markus PaulChampionsnight Wipperfürth, Germany Decision32:00
Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest   Notes

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References

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  25. Warren Stevelmans replaces Shemsi Beqiri against Ky Hollenbeck at Glory 12 this weekend Archived 2015-06-13 at the Wayback Machine
  26. Superpro Fight Night 6 Basel: Andy Souwer out, Foad Sadeghi in
  27. SuperPro Fight Night 6 results
  28. Glory 14 Co-Main Event Change and Updated Fight Card Archived 2014-01-31 at the Wayback Machine
  29. Teo Mikelić uskočio na Glory 14 protiv Groenharta! Archived 2014-07-17 at the Wayback Machine (in Croatian)
  30. Körperverletzung und Drohung: Thaibox-Trainer von Carlos ist vorbestraft , Blick 29 August 2013. Dina Sambar, Julian Eicke, Reinach: Keiner wusste vom kriminellen Thaiboxer Carlos Basler Zeitung , 30 August 2013.
  31. Blick, 27 February 2014
  32. Massenschlägerei in «Carlos»-Kampfsportschule Tages-Anzeiger, 25 February 2014. «Ich realisierte: Balicha will mich umbringen» Blick, 4 March 2014.
  33. Shemsi Beqiri pretučen baseball palicama: Teo Mikelić uskočio na Glory 14 (index.hr)
  34. Superpro Fightnight 8 Results
  35. Superpro Fightnight Uskana 1 Results
  36. "Superpro Fightnight 7 Results". Archived from the original on 2016-03-24. Retrieved 2016-03-17.
  37. Cosmo Alexandre wins the W5 -71kg Tournament -Bratislava- 30 November 2014 Archived 9 December 2014 at the Wayback Machine