Glory 23 Results: Nieky Holzken stops Raymond Daniels to win Glory Welterweight Title

Glory 23 took place tonight at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The night's main event featured Nieky Holzken vs. Raymond Daniels for the Glory Welterweight Championship. The fight was a re-match from their Glory 19 bout in which Holzken defeated Daniels by third round (T)KO. 

Daniels came out aggressive to start the bout, while Holzken seemed content with picking his shots in the first round. In the second round Holzken began to get a little more aggressive and stalk Daniels. Both fighters were effective mixing their strikes. Daniels showed a more complete arsenal than he had done previously in his Glory fights, while Holzken was accurate with his strikes as usual connecting with low kicks and working the body with punches. In the third round Holzken came out as the aggressor and was able to land a few solid punches and a knee as he cornered Daniels. The knee opened a massive cut on Daniels left eye, Holzken went in for the kill and unloaded punches to the head and body before backing away. Referee John McCarthy moved in and the fight was stopped immediately. The cut was on the eye lid of Daniels, it was a good stoppage by McCarthy as some serious damage could have occurred if the fight had continued. With the stoppage Holzken captured the Glory Welterweight Championship and has now won his last eight fights, with six of those wins coming by (T)KO.

In the middleweight tournament Dustin Jacoby punched his way to victory, winning both of his bouts by stoppage. In the tournament semi-final he stopped Ariel Sepulveda with one second left in the first round and in the tournament final he stopped Casey Greene with strikes in the second round. The tournament victory is huge for Jacoby, he entered Glory after winning a Road to Glory tournament on less than 24 hours notice. He scored three knockouts in the Road to Glory tournament which was also his Kickboxing debut, but was immediately put in the ring with fighters that had a lot more experience and it showed. Coming into the tournament Jacoby had lost his last four fights. Hopefully Jacoby can build on the tournament win and climb back up the Glory ladder.

Xavier Vigney had stiff test in Daniel Sam at Glory 23. Vigney was coming off having won the heavyweight tournament at Glory 21 and had a lot of eyes on him this bout. He continued his momentum against Sam. Vigney pushed the pace and was successful through out the fight in pressuring Sam and connecting with low kicks and punches. The judges awarded a split decision victory to Vigney. The win is easily the biggest of Vigney's career to date.

Results:

Nieky Holzken def. Raymond Daniels via (T)KO (Cut) at 1:36 of Rd. 3 - Wins Glory Welterweight Championship

Xavier Vigney def. Daniel Sam via Split Decision

Tournament Semi-Finals

Casey Greene def. Quinton O'Brien via Unanimous Decision

Dustin Jacoby def. Ariel Sepulveda via KO at 2:59 of Rd. 1

Tournament Final

Dustin Jacoby def. Casey Greene via (T)KO at 1:19 of Rd. 2

Super Fight Series

Jamal Ben Saddik def. Anderson Silva via (T)KO at 2:55 of Rd. 3

Matt Baker def. Edward Hyman via Unanimous Decision

Chad Sugden def. Murthel Groenhart via Split Decision

Anvar Boynazarov def. Giga Chikadse via Split Decision

Glory 23 Fight Card Finalized

The fight card for Glory 23 on August 7th in Las Vegas has been finalized. The promotions first trip to Sin City will feature a welterweight title bout between Nieky Holzken (@NiekyHolzken) and Raymond Daniels (@RD_GOAT) as previously announced. 

Some of the new additions to the fight card are Quinton O'Brien and Ariel Sepulveda (@ArielSmash10) who will be part of the middleweight contender tournament. O'Brien will fight Casey Greene (@CaseyGreene1) and Sepuvelda will fight Dustin Jacoby (@DustinJacobyDJ).

Other fights added are heavyweights Anderson Silva (@AndersonBradock) vs. Jamal Ben Saddik (@BenSaddikJamal) and Matt Baker vs. Edward Hyman.

Fight Card:

Nieky Holzken vs. Raymond Daniels for Glory Welterweight Championship

Xavier Vigney vs. Daniel Sam

Anderson Silva vs. Jamal Ben Saddik

Murthel Groenhart vs. Chad Sugden

Matt Baker vs. Edward Hyman

Giga Chikadze vs. Anvar Boynazarav

Middleweight Contender Tournament

Casey Greene vs. Quinton O'Brien

Dustin Jacoby vs. Ariel Sepulveda

Action Pro Gear KO of the Week: Gokhan Saki vs. Anderson Braddock Silva

This Action Pro Gear KO of the Week features the powerful striking of Gokhan Saki. Known for his powerful punches and fearless style, Saki brings the heat to his bout with Anderson Braddock Silva.

The pair fought at Glory 4 and it only took one round for Saki to put the larger heavyweight Silva away.

Make sure to visit ActionProGear.com for all the best prices on training and fight gear.

Glory 16 Denver Fight Card

Glory Sports International announces the full Glory 16 bout card. The event returns to the states, set for Denver, Colorado, May 3rd.  The card includes Glory's regular format of main card bouts, a 4-man tournament, and a list of superfights.

Nieky Holzken returns to the ring to defend his Glory Welterweight World Championship Title against the formidable Marc De Bonte. De Bonte is a long time veteran of the sport with nearly one hundred fights and only 9 losses. 

Pat Barry, known for fighting in the UFC, makes his Glory debut and a return to his kickboxing roots. He faces Zack Mwekassa in a bout that will no doubt initiate a strong impression of Barry's return to the ring.

Also featured in the event is a 4-man heavyweight contender tournament, which includes Anderson Silva vs. Sergey Kharitonov and Ben Edwards vs. Errol Zimmerman.

Fight Card:

Nieky Holzken vs. Marc de Bonte.

Pat Barry vs. Zack Mwekassa

4-Man Tournament:

Anderson Silva vs. Sergey Kharitonov

Ben Edwards vs. Errol Zimmerman

Superfights:

Benjamin Adegbuyi vs. Daniel Sam

Igor Jurkovic vs. Artem Vakhitov

Raymond Daniels vs. Francois Ambang

4 more bouts confirmed for Glory 13 including main event between Daniel Ghita and Errol Zimmerman

Glory has made four bouts official for Glory 13 in addition to the already confirmed welterweight tournament bouts. The main event will feature Daniel Ghita vs. Errol Zimmerman. Also confirmed for the event are Dustin Jacoby vs. Makoto Uehara, Peter Aerts vs. Rico Verhoeven, and Remy Bonjasky vs. Anderson Silva.

Ghita returns to action after recently coming up short in the finals of the Glory heavyweight tournament at Glory 11 in Chicago. Ghita won his first fight on the night by KO over Anderson Silva, but was out pointed by Rico Verhoeven in the final. Zimmerman defeated Hesdy Gerges at Glory 11 by KO in tournament reserve bout.

Glory heavyweight tournament champion Rico Verhoeven will get to add a legend to his name if he can pull out the win against Peter Aerts. Verhoeven stamped his name on the heavyweight kickboxing scene with his wins over Gokhan Saki and Daniel Ghita at Glory 11. Aerts will look to score another knockout over a much younger fighter. Earlier this year he scored a KO over heavy hitting Jamal Ben Saddik at Glory 8.

The highlight of Glory 13 will likely be the welterweight tournament which will feature Nieky Holzken, Joseph Valtellini, Marc De Bonte, and Karapet Karapetyan. Glory 13 will take place December 21 in Tokyo, Japan.

Fight Card:
 

Welterweight Tournament

Nieky Holzken vs. Marc de Bonte
Joseph Valtellini vs. Karapet Karapetyan

Tournament Reserve Bout

Karim Ghajji vs. Alexander Stetsurenko

Super Fights

Daniel Ghita vs. Errol Zimmerman

Dustin Jacoby vs. Makoto Uehara

Peter Aerts vs. Rico Verhoeven

Remy Bonjasky vs. Anderson Silva

Glory 11 Results and Recap

Glory 11 took place tonight at the Sears Center in Chicago, IL and it did not disappoint. The Glory 4-Man heavyweight tournament took place and it was full of surprises. In the first semi-final bout tournament favorite Gokhan Saki was defeated by Rico Verhoeven by majority decision. Verhoeven scored a flash knockdown over Saki in the first round, which Saki protested and even pushed the referee. The fight continued and despite Saki trying to rally Verhoeven did a good job surviving a barrage from Saki and controlling the fight on his way to one of the biggest wins of his career.

In the other semi-final bout Daniel Ghita ran through Anderson Silva after a huge right hook put Silva’s lights out in the first round.

In the tournament final Verhoeven used leg kicks to outpoint Ghita and take home a unanimous decision. It was easily the biggest win of Verhoeven’s career as he beat two of the best heavyweights in the world to capture the Glory tournament victory.

The highly anticipated re-match between Tyrone Spong and Nathan Corbett lived up to expectations. Both men came out throwing heavy punches and kicks and neither was backing down. Despite both fighters throwing heavy shots their technique was crisp. Spong struck first when a left near the end of the first round seemed to rock Corbett, but he made it out of the round. In the second round Spong struck fast as a short left hook knocked Corbett down. Corbett beat the referee’s count and both men went back to throwing heavy leather and moments later another left hook dropped Corbett. The referee began his count and Corbett got back to his feet, when the referee asked if Corbett was okay to continue it seemed Corbett was slow to respond and the referee stopped the fight. Corbett didn’t agree as he stated he was able to continue.

In the night’s co-main event Joseph Valtellini and Karim Ghajji went toe to toe for three rounds. Both fighters were technical and accurate with their attacks, but Valtellini seemed to be landing the cleaner shots more often. As the third round was winding down a spinning back fist by Valtellini rocked Ghajji and Valtellini pounced. The referee jumped in and gave Ghajji a standing eight count. When the fight resumed Valtellini went on the attack and Ghajji was clearly hurt. A head kick from Valtellini connected and the referee stepped in to stop the bout, huge win for Valtellini.

Results:

Glory 4-Man Heavyweight Tournament Semi-Final
Rico Verhoeven def. Gokhan Saki via Majority Decision
Daniel Ghita def. Anderson Silva via KO in Rd. 1

Glory 4-Man Heavyweight Tournament Final
Rico Verhoeven def. Daniel Ghita via Unanimous Decision

Glory 4-Man Heavyweight Tournament Reserve Bout
Errol Zimmerman def. Hesdy Gerges via (T)KO in Rd. 3

Super Fights
Tyrone Spong def. Nathan Corbett via KO in Rd. 2
Joseph Valtellini def. Karim Ghajji via (T)KO in Rd. 3

Under Card
Sergei Kharitonov def. Daniel Sam via Unanimous Decision
Danyo Ilunga def. Michael Duut via (T)KO in Rd. 1
Saulo Cavalair def. Filip Verlinden via Unanimous Decision
Steve Moxon def. Reece McAllister via KO in Rd. 3
Gabriel Varga def. Jose Palacios via Unanimous Decision
Troy Sheridan def. Michael Mananquil via Unanimous Decision
Maurice Greene def. Yang Rae Yoo via Unanimous Decision
Aaron Swenson def. Billy Rose via KO in Rd. 2
Kyle Weickhardt def. Quartus Stitt via Unanimous Decision
Ian Alexander def. Austin Lewis via Split Decision
Axel Mendez def. Jordan Weiland via Unanimous Decision

Tyrone Spong vs. Nathan Corbett and more confirmed for Glory 11 in Chicago

It was known that Glory was headed to Chicago, IL with Glory 11, but now Glory has released some info as to who will be in action at the event. Glory 11 will take place October 12th at the Sears Center Arena and mark Glory's live Spike TV debut.

The event will feature a one night four man heavyweight tournament featuring Gokhan Saki (79-16-1), Rico Verhoeven (40-7-1), Daniel Ghita (48-9), and Anderson Silva (36-9-1). The winner of the tournament will take home $250,000.

Also on the fight card is a highly anticipated re-match between Tyrone Spong (72-6-1) and Nathan Corbett (57-3-1). In 2009 Spong and Corbett fought to a controversial no contest at Champion of Champions 2 in 2009. In an exciting fight Spong drew first blood knocking down Corbett in the second round with a right hook. In the third round a short right from Corbett put Spong flat on his back, after Spong made it back up to wobbly feet the referee waived the bout off. Corbett either didn't see the waving off of the fight or thought it meant to resume fighting and he rushed in to finish the fight knocking down Spong again. The fight was then ruled a no contest.

Joseph Valtellini (10-1) will also be taking a huge step up in competition as he takes on Karim Ghajji (85-8-1). Valtellini has looked impressive in his two fights for Glory finishing both Murat Direkci and Francois Ambang in the third round. Ghajji will be looking to rebound from his loss to Nieky Holzken due to a cut at Glory 6.

Fight Card:

Tyrone Spong vs. Nathan Corbett

Joseph Valtellini vs. Karim Ghajji

Four Man Heavyweight Tournament

Gokhan Saki vs. Rico Verhoeven

Daniel Ghita vs. Anderson Silva

4-Man Heavyweight Tournament taking place at Glory 11 in Chicago

Our friends over at Fight Sport Asia reported earlier today that Glory 11 will be taking place in Chicago, IL. The event is expected to feature a 4-man heavyweight tournament featuring the likes of Gokhan Saki, Daniel Ghita, Rico Verhoeven, and Anderson Silva. 

All four fighters are ranked in the top 10 of Glory's heavyweight rankings, with Saki and Ghita taking the number two and three spots. All four are known for being viscous KO artists in the ring and nothing less should be expected at Glory 11.

Glory 11 will occur in October and is expected to mark Glory's debut on Spike TV. Click here to read the entire article from Fight Sport Asia.

Glory 9 Results and Recap: Tyrone Spong Wins Light Heavyweight Tournament

Glory 9 took place last night at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York, NY. The inaugural Glory event in the United States featured and eight man light heavyweight tournament. Tyrone Spong was the heavy favorite coming into the tournament and Danyo Ilunga was considered by many to be the man to challenge Spong for the tournament crown. As expected Spong and Ilunga met in the tournament final.
 

Spong had a scare in his first fight of the tournament as he was knocked down by Michael Duut immediately as their bout started, but moments later after getting back to his feet he delivered a crushing right hand that ended the fight thirty seconds in. Ilunga won his first bout by unanimous decision over Mourad Bouzidi. In the tournament semi-finals both Spong and Ilunga won by unanimous decision to advance to the finals. Spong defeating Filip Verlinden and Ilunga defeated Dustin Jacoby.

Fans were expecting a barn burner in the tournament finale between Spong and Ilunga, but instead were treated to an anticlimactic ending. As the fight began both fighters met in the center of the ring and Spong unloaded a flurry and Ilunga covered up, the referee jumped in and stopped the fight in what was clearly a premature stoppage. Ilunga was not happy with the stoppage and protested as fans in attendance let out a chorus of boos at the referee's decision. With the stoppage Spong sealed the deal and won the Glory light heavyweight tournament and the $200,000 grand prize.

Daniel Ghita and Brice Guidon met in a super fight and it took Ghita less than one minute to score a devastating knockout. Both fighters started off exchanging leg kicks but Ghita was able to corner Guidon and began to unload punches to the body. Guidon was covering up and eventually tried to punch his way out but that left an opening for a crushing left hook from Ghita. Guidon hit the canvas and the fight was waived off by the referee immediately. With the win Ghita ends a two fight skid, while Guidon has now lost three consecutive fights.

Joseph Valtellini welcomed Road to Glory USA welterweight tournament winner Francois Ambang to Glory with vicious leg kicks. After a close first round in which both fighters landed solid combinations and leg kicks, Valtellini took control in the second round. He seemed to have Ambang hurt on more than one occasion near the end of the second round. In the third round Valtellini continued to land his crisp combinations followed by leg kicks and it became evident that Ambang's leg was injured. Valtellini smelled the blood like a shark and went on the attack knocking Ambang down with some nasty low kicks. Ambang was able to get back to his feet but could not walk towards the referee and the fight was called. Another impressive victory for Valtellini who has won three straight fights and is now 2-0 fighting for Glory.

Mike Lemaire came into his fight with Wayne Barrett on a an eight fight win streak including winning the  Road to Glory USA middleweight tournament. On paper Lemaire was easily the favorite having 8 pro fights to Barrett's one, but that was on paper. Wayne Barrett looked phenomenal with great foot work in the ring. In the first round he scored a standing eight count over Lemaire and int he second round he knocked Lemaire down with a knee. Lemaire tried to press forward but could not connect with anything as Barrett was in and out of range in a heart beat. A left hook from Barret rocked Lemaire and he went down face first. The referee halted the action giving Barrett the victory. An amazing performance by Wayne Barrett.

Results:
Light Heavyweight Tournament Finals
Tyrone Spong def. Danyo Ilunga via (T)KO at 0:16 of Rd. 1

Light Heavyweight Tournament Semi-finals
Danyo Ilunga def. Dustin Jacoby via Unanimous Decision
Tyrone Spong def. Filip Verlinden via Unanimous Decision

Light Heavyweight Tournament Quarterfinals
Tyrone Spong def. Michael Duut via KO at 0:31 of Rd. 1
Filip Verlinden def. Steve McKinnon via Split Decision
Dustin Jacoby def. Brian Collette via Split Decision

Danyo Ilunga def. Mourad Bouzidi via Unanimous Decision

Super Fights
Rico Verhoeven def. Errol Zimmerman via Unanimous Decision
Daniel Ghita def. Brice Guidon via KO at 0:49 of Rd. 1

Anderson Silva def. Daniel Sam via Unanimous Decision
Joseph Valtellini def. Francois Ambang via (T)KO (Leg Kicks) at 1:24 of Rd. 3

Wayne Barrett def. Mike Lemaire via KO at 1:12 of Rd. 2

Undercard
Brett Hlavacek def. Paul Marfort via Unanimous Decision

Robert Plotkin def. Casey Greene via (T)KO at 1:16 of Rd 1

Andrea DeAngelo def. Laura Byrnds via Unanimous Decision
Andrew Ball def. James Smith via KO at 1:34 of Rd. 3
Chris Mauceri def. Niko Tsigaras via Unanimous Decision
Nick Pace def. Levan Makashvili via Split Decision

Match ups announced for Glory 8: Tokyo 143lb tournament

The draw for the Glory 143lb tournament taking place at Glory 8: Tokyo took place last week and the match ups are set. Most people are probably interested in the potential re-match between Mosab Amrani and Liam Harrison. Amrani knocked out Harrison with a body shot in the first round, and it seems the pair will meet again if they can both get past their quarterfinal bouts. Amrani will square off with Marcus Vinicius and Harrison with Masaaki Noiri. On the opposite side of the bracket Adellah Ezbiri will fight Gabriel Varga, and Yuta Kubo will fight Chi Bin Lim. Amrani and Harrison have to be considered the favorites going in, but as always in the tournament format anything can happen.

Also on the fight card Kickboxing legend Jerome Le Banner will fight against Koichi Pettas. Other match up on the event include Peter Aerts vs. Jamal Ben Saddik, Albert Kraus vs. Andy Ristie, and Anderson Silva vs. Jaideep Singh. Another stacked fight card from Glory that should produce fire works.

Fight Card:
Jerome Le Banner vs. Koichi Pettas
Peter Aerts vs. Jamal Ben Saddik
Anderson Silva vs. Jaideep Singh
Albert Kraus vs. Andy Ristie

143lb Tournament Quarterfinals
Mosab Amrani vs. Marcus Vinicius
Masaaki Noiri vs. Liam Harrison
Abdellah Ezbiri vs. Gabriel Varga
Yuta Kubo vs. Abdellah Ezbiri

Tournament Reserve Bouts
Chonglek Super Pro Samui vs. Zen Fujita
Andre Bruhl vs. Yukihiro Komiya

Glory 4 Results: Schilt wins Heavyweight Grand Slam

Glory 4 took place on New Year’s Eve; the event featured the 16-man Heavyweight Grand Slam and when all the night’s action was completed Semmy Schilt was the last man standing. Schilt met Daniel Ghita in the tournament final, Schilt connected with a head kick that sent Ghita down in the opening frame. Although Ghita was able to get back to his feet the fight was topped by the referee giving Schilt the tournament crown.

Schilt defeated some top talent to win the tournament in addition to Ghita including Brice Guidon, Rico Verhoeven, and Gokhan Saki. For his efforts Schillt won $400,000.

In super fight action Robin van Roosmalen took home a unanimous decision victory over Yuichiro Nagashima.

Results:

Heavyweight Grand Slam Opening Round

Semmy Schilt def. Brice Guidon via KO in Rd. 2

Rico Verhoeven def. Sergei Kharitonov via Unanimous Decision

Gokhan Saki def. Raoumaru via (T)KO in Rd. 1

Anderson "Braddock" Silva def. Igor Jurkovic via (T)KO in Rd. 1

Remy Bonjasky def. Filip Verlinden via Split Decision

Jamal Ben Saddik def. Errol Zimmerman via Unanimous Decision

Mourad Bouzidi def. Peter Aerts via (T)KO in Rd. 1

Daniel Ghita def. Jhonata Diniz via Unanimous Decision

Heavyweight Grand Slam Quarterfinals

Semmy Schilt def. Rico Verhoeven via Unanimous Decision

Gokhan Saki def. Anderson "Braddock" Silva via KO in Rd. 1

Jamal Ben Saddik def. Remy Bonjasky via Unanimous Decision

Daniel Ghita def. Mourad Bouzidi (T)KO (Injury) in Rd. 2

Heavyweight Grand Slam Semi-finals

Semmy Schilt def. Gokhan Saki via Unanimous Decision

Daniel Ghita def. Jamal Ben Saddik via KO in Rd. 1

Heavyweight Grand Slam Final

Semmy Schilt def. Daniel Ghita via (T)KO in Rd. 1

Super Fights

Robin van Roosmalen def. Yuichiro Nagashima via Unanimous Decision

Mutsuki Ebata def. Sang-Jae Kim via Unanimous Decision

Jason Wilnis def. Toshio Matsumoto via Unanimous Decision

Jerome Le Banner def. Koichi Pettas via KO in Rd. 3

Matches for Glory 4 Heavyweight GP set

The heavyweight tournament bouts for Glory 4 are set. The event which will take place on December 31, 2012 in Tokyo will feature a 16-man one night tournament. As Glory has proven in recent events, most of the top talent is under their promotion. Semmy Schilt, Anderson Silva, Remy Bonjasky, Errol Zimmerman, Daniel Ghita, Peter Aerts, Gokhan Saki and Rico Verhoeven will all be in action.

The rules for the tournament will be a bit different than a regular bout. The first three rounds of the tournament will feature an open scoring system with two minute rounds. With the open scoring system if a fighter is clearly ahead on points after the second round there will be no need for a third round and he is declared the winner of the bout.

The finals of the tournament will feature regular Glory rules with three rounds of three minutes each, there will also be two extra rounds if necessary.

Glory 4 HW GP Matches:
Semmy Schilt vs. Brice Guidon
Rico Verhoeven vs. Sergei Kharitonov
Raomoru vs. Gokhan Saki
Igor Jurkovic vs. Anderson Silva
Filip Verlinden vs. Remy Bonjasky
Jamal Ben Saddick vs. Errol Zimmerman
Mourad Bouzidi vs. Peter Aerts
Fabiano Aoki vs. Daniel Ghita

Results for Glory 2 Brussels: Bonjasky edges out Silva in return to action

Glory 2 Brussels took place this weekend in Brussels, Belgium. The main event featured the return to action of Remy Bonjasky after nearly a three year hiatus. Welcoming Bonjasky back was Anderson “Braddock” Silva. Both fighters went to work as soon as there fight started and although it seemed that Silva took the first two rounds a strong third round by Bonjasky forced an extra round. In the extra round Bonjasky was able to do enough to take home the decision victory in his return to action.

Also on the card Gokhan Saki took home a unanimous decision victory over a very durable and tough Mourad Bouzidi, while Nieky Holzken scored a (T)KO victory over Murat Direkci. 

Glory announces 13 fighters for upcoming Glory Grand Slam 16-man Heavyweight Tournament in Japan

Glory World Series has announced 13 of the 16 participants for their Glory Grand Slam 16-man Heavyweight Tournament. The event will take place in Tokyo, Japan this December. Some of the biggest names in Kickboxing have agreed to compete in the tournament and they include Semmy Schilt, Remy Bonjasky, Peter Aerts, Jerome Le Banner, Gokhan Saki, Errol Zimmerman, Anderson “Braddock” Silva, Sergei Kharitonov, Filip Verlinden, Ismael Londt, Brice Guidon, Jamal Ben Saddik and Igor Jurkovic.

The event is a one night single elimination tournament; the remaining three spots should be announced soon. At least one Japanese representative is expected to take up one of the three remaining spots.