GLORY Grand Prix Preview

This Saturday night, March 9, will see the historic GLORY Heavyweight Grand Prix event take place at the GelreDome in Arnhem, the Netherlands. Eight of the best heavyweights on the planet will compete in an eight-man one-night tournament where the winner will walk away with a cool $500,000 prizemoney & the title of Grand Prix Champion.

Heavyweight Tournament

How the draw worked, the four lower seeded fighters selected which quarter-final they wanted to compete in while the four top seeded fighters then selected which fighter to face in the opening round. As a result, the ‘King of Kickboxing’ Rico Verhoeven (61-10, 20 KO) opted to fight France’s Sofian Laïdouni (35-2-1, 17 KO) in the fourth quarter-final of night.

Former interim-heavyweight champion Tariq ‘Cookie’ Osaro (25-3-1, 13 KO) will meet the dangerous Bahram Rajabzadeh (65-1, 58 KO) in a potentially wild & explosive affair. In what is the most explosive fight of the opening round, Nigeria’s Tariq ‘Cookie’ Osaro (25-3-1, 13 KO) collides with Azerbaijan’s Bahram Rajabzadeh (65-1, 58 KO). Osaro is the former interim-GLORY heavyweight champ and had a breakout 2023 which saw him qualify for the Grand Prix after winning a four-man tournament, he followed this up with a big KO victory over Antonio Plazibat, and then went the distance with Rico Verhoeven in November. 2023 was also a big year for Rajabzadeh. He returned to GLORY after four years away and won three fights straight, including his own four-man tournament win to qualify for the Grand Prix. What was also impressive about ‘The Golden Wolf’ was his ability to cause chaos and damage to opponents much bigger than him.

The Forgotten Man

In what is an intriguing match-up, the youngest participant in the Grand Prix takes on the eldest as 23-year-old Nabil Khacab (27-4-1, 4 KO) meets 39-year-old Benjamin Adegbuyi (35-7, 20 KO). In what is an intriguing match-up, the youngest participant in the Grand Prix takes on the eldest as 23-year-old Nabil Khacab (27-4-1, 4 KO) meets 39-year-old Benjamin Adegbuyi (35-7, 20 KO). 2023 was a breakout year for young Nabil Khachab. The Moroccan went from unknown fighter to making his GLORY debut and now finds himself in one of the biggest kickboxing tournaments of all-time, all in the space of just thirteen months. With a 3-1 GLORY record in his debut year, he certainly earned his spot in the Grand Prix. What is probably most impressive is that, despite his large & unassuming frame, Khachab has pushed the pace in all his fights thus far and has the best accuracy of all the heavyweights with a 67% strike rate. This statistic is important because it lines up with Adebguyi’s defense rate. Of all eight heavyweights, the former two-time title contender absorbs the most strikes per minute on average. While this may be one shortcoming, he does have experience on his side and is the most successful tournament fighter in GLORY heavyweight history. Adegbuyi has won three one-night tournaments and reached the final of the last eight-man Grand Prix. Adegbuyi also has the height and reach advantage over almost four inches on Khachab in both departments. He has all the right tools to be victorious but the question is whether or not he can deal with the pressure and pace the rising prospect brings.

Threat to the Throne

Rising Dutch star Levi Rigters (15-1, 7 KO) collides with power puncher Uku Jürjendal (20-8, 16 KO) in the opening fight of the tournament. Rigters returned after a year-long layoff last October and walked through late replacement Ion Taburceanu at GLORY 89 in Bulgaria to book his spot in the Grand Prix. Known for being one of the most promising rising stars in GLORY, Rigters represents the new wave of Dutch talents looking to make the transition from top prospect to legit contender. The 28-year-old feels his time is now and that the Grand Prix is the perfect stage to make a statement. As the number two seed in the competition, Rigters specifically chose to face Jürjendal as his first opponent. The Estonian comes into this fight off the back of the biggest win of his career, a demolition of the legendary Badr Hari last October. The 35-year-old had a rollercoaster debut year in GLORY mixing wins and losses, but one thing remained consistent – his power. Stylistically, this is a great first fight for both fighters. Rigters, who is the more refined and fluid striker, will aim to be elusive with his movement and utilize his patented leg kicks on the more stagnant Jürjendal who likes to plant himself as he throws heavy shots.

GLORY Grand Prix will also feature two GLORY title fights as Donegi Abena (27-9, 7 KO) and Tarik Khbabez (49-10-1, 28 KO) meet to decide who is the undisputed king of the GLORY light heavyweight division and lightweight champion Tyjani Beztati (25-4, 9 KO) puts his title on the line against top German Enriko Kehl (52-15-2, 30 KO). In addition we have the Middleweight superfight between Ivan Galaz and Iliass Hammouche.