Fight Card for Glory 25

Glory 25 takes place this Friday November 6 in Milan, Italy. It will be Glory's first show since officially announcing their events will no longer air on Spike TV. The current information on how the event can be seen is unknown, but the fight card is still stacked.

The main event will feature Glory Lightweight Champion Robin van Roosmalen as he puts his title on the line against Sittichai Sitsongpeenong. This bout will be van Roosmalen's second title defense with his most recent being a decision victory over former champion Andy Ristie. Sittichai won the Glory 22 contender tournament and since then has won four more bouts in other promotions leading to his showdown with van Roosmalen. It should be fireworks between these two.

The co-main event will feature the return of Giorgio Petrosyan as he takes on Josh Jauncey. Petrosyan has not fought for Glory since Glory 12 on November of 2013 where he lost for only the second time in his career. Since the loss Petrosyan has fought only three times with all of them ending in victories. He defeated Erkan Varol, Enriko Kehl, and most recently Xu Yan. Jauncey has taken the Kickboxing world by storm since debuting in 2014. He has gone 4-1 with three of his wins coming by knockout. He last competed at Glory 22 this past June in the lightweight tournament where he won his semi-final bout against Djime Coulibaly by (T)KO, but came up short in a decision to Sittichai Sitsongpeenong in the tournament finals. 

A four man tournament in the Glory welterweight division will take place. The semi-final bouts for the tournament are Murthel Groenhart vs. Nicola Galo and Karim Ghajji vs. Yoann Kongolo.

The Super Fight Series portion of the card will also feature some big names. Glory Featherweight Champion Gabriel Varga will make his first title defense against Serhiy Adamchuk. The pair was previously set to fight on the Bellator 142: Dynamite event, but an injury forced Varga to withdraw from the bout.

Danyo Illunga and Artem Vakhitov will also square off at Glory 25. Illunga was a hot prospect when Glory first launched, but has struggled as of late going 2-3 in his last five fights. Vakhitov most recently competed for Glory at Glory 20 where he dropped a split decision to current Glory Light Heavyweight Champion Saulo Cavalari. Before the loss to Cavalari, Vakhitov had won eight consecutive bouts.

Fight Card:

Robin van Roosmalen (c) vs. Sittichai Sitsongpeenong for Glory Lightweight Championship

Giorgio Petrosyan vs. Josh Jauncey

Gabriel Varga (c) vs. Serhiy Adamchuk for Glory Featherweight Championship

Danyo Illunga vs. Artem Vakhitov

Samir Boukhidous vs. Vittorio Iermano

Stefano Bruno vs. Hosam Radwan

Anatoly Moiseev vs. Teo Mikelic

Glory Welterweight Tournament:

Murthel Groenhart vs. Nicola Galo

Karim Ghajji vs. Yoann Kongolo

Fight Night Saint-Tropez 4 Results: Jerome Le Banner takes controversial win over Karl Roberson

Fight Night Saint-Tropez 4 took place last night in France and featured a main event bout between Kickboxing legend Jerome Le Banner and American Karl Roberson. Le Banner was originally scheduled to fight Maurice Jackson, but Roberson stepped in on short notice.

The first round was a feeling out process between the two, but Le Banner controlled the ring. The controversy came in the second round when with a little over a minute left in the second round Roberson landed a left hand that sent Le Banner to the canvas. Le Banner got up immediately and walked to the corner as if he was expecting an 8 count from the referee, but no count from the referee came and the fight continued. Le Banner went on the attack and was pressuring Roberson towards the ropes, but with less than 30 seconds left in the round another left hand from Roberson sent Le Banner to the canvas. The referee proceeded with a slow count, it took Le Banner 10 seconds just to get up off the canvas, then he walked to the ropes as the referee proceeded with his slow count and then had Le Banner raise his hands and let the fight continue. Over 20 seconds had passed by the time that Le Banner was ready to fight again. What should have been a knockout victory for Roberson didn't happen and the fight continued with the second round ending as soon as the fight was resumed.

The remainder of the fight was close with each man pressing the action at different points. Roberson came out aggressive to start the third round, likely sensing Le Banner was hurt, while Le Banner came out aggressive in the fifth round with the fourth round being pretty even between the two. In the end the judges awarded Le Banner the decision victory.

In other action it was not a good night for Glory veterans. Yohan Lidon scored a third round (T)KO over Jonathan Oliveira, Alexei Papin scored a decision over Danyo Ilunga, and Alexander Vezhevaov defeated Filip Verlinden by decision.

Results:

Jerome Le Banner def. Karl Roberson via Decision

Yohan Lidon def. Jonathan Oliveira via (T)KO in Rd. 3

Alexei Papin def. Danyo Ilunga via Decision

Lizzie Largilliere def. Petchoydying Mor via (T)KO in Rd. 4

Alexander Vezhevatov def. Filip Verlinden via Decision

Fabrice Aurieng def. Yuksel Ayaydin via Decision

Yodwicha Por Boonsit def. Jimmy Vienot via Decision

Frank Munoz def. Zinedine Hameur-Lain via Decision

Sharos Huyer def. Bakari Tounkara via Decision

Jerome Le Banner vs. Maurice Jackson set for Fight Night Saint-Tropez 3 August 4th in France

Kickboxing legend Jerome Le Banner is set to defend his WKN Heavyweight World Title against American Maurice Jackson at Fight Night Saint-Tropez 3 in Saint-Tropez, France on August 4th.

Le Banner will be looking to win his fourth consecutive fight, he has fought in the two previous installments of Fight Night Saint-Tropez with both of those fights ending in (T)KO victories for Le Banner. 

Also on the fight card will be Glory standouts Danyo Ilunga (@TheRealDibuba) and Filip Verlinden (@Filip_Verlinden). Ilunga will fight Alexei Papin. Ilunga was is coming off a loss against Zabit Samedov in the finals of the GFC Fight Series 3 tournament where he lost an extra round decision. Papin will be looking to win his third fight in row, after winning his previous two bouts by stoppage. Verlinden will fight Vladimir Mineev. Like Ilunga Verlinden will be looking to get back on the winning track while putting an end to Mineev's current 20 fight win streak.

Fight Card:

Jerome Le Banner vs. Maurice Jackson

Yodwicha Por. Boonsit vs. Jimmy Vienot

Yuksel Ayaydin vs. Fabrice Aurieng

Zinedine Hamuer-Lain vs. Frank Munoz

Bakari Tounkara vs. Sharos Huyer

Filip Verlinden vs. Vladimir Mineev

Yohan Lidon vs. Jonathan Oliveira

Danyo Ilunga vs. Alexei Papin

Lizzie Largilliere vs. Petchoyding Mor

Glory 18: Return to Glory Results and Recap

Glory returned to action for the first time in nearly five months. Glory 18: Return to Glory took place last night at the Grand Casino Hotel & Resort in Shawnee, Oklahoma. The night's main event featured a lightweight title fight between champion Davit Kiria and challenger Robin van Roosmalen. Kiria won the title with a come from behind knockout victory over Andy Risite earlier this year. The pair had fought twice already with van Roosmalen having won their two previous encounters by unanimous decision. 

The first two rounds were a close as both fighters were trading strikes. In the third round Kiria scored with a big 1-2 combination that dropped van Roosmalen, after he was able to beat the count Kiria was all over van Roosmalen trying to finish the fight. Despite Kiria's efforts van Roosmalen was able to survive and make it to the championship rounds. The fourth round was tight as it didn't seem either fighter did enough to edge the other. In the final round van Roosmalen was more active and landing nice combinations that likely gave him the round. When it was over the bout was ruled a majority decision in favor of van Roosmalen making him the new Glory lightweight champion.

Saulo Cavalari and Zack Mwekassa met in the finals of the Glory light heavyweight contenders tournament. Cavalari out pointed Danyo Ilunga to earn a decision victory and his ticket to the tournament final, while Mwekassa scored a crushing knockout of Brian Collette to secure his spot in the finals. 

Mwekassa started off strong in the tournament final throwing heavy punches and keeping Cavalari on the defensive. As the fight wore on, however, Cavalari began to open up more as Mwekassa started to slow down. In the third round Cavalari fainted a low kick and went up high knocking Mwekassa down to the canvas. Despite his efforts to get up Mwekassa could not recover and Cavalari won the contenders tournament. 

In other action on the night Jason Wilnis stunned most by out striking Wayne Barrett to win a unanimous decision and Rob Thomas scored a knockout over Mike Lemaire to end his two fight losing streak. 

Results:

Main Card

Robin van Roosmalen def. Davit Kiria via Majority Decision

Jason Wilnis def. Wayne Barrett via Unanimous Decision

Glory Light Heavyweight Contenders Tournament Final

Saulo Cavalari def. Zack Mwekassa via KO (Head Kick) at 0:20 of Rd. 3

Glory Light Heavyweight Contenders Tournament Semi-finals

Zack Mwekassa def. Brian Collette via KO at 0:45 of Rd. 2

Saulo Cavalari def. Danyo Ilunga via Unanimous Decision

Super Fight Series

Benjamin Adegbuyi def. Hesdy Gerges via Unanimous Decision

Randy Blake def. Warren Thompson via Unanimous Decision

Rob Thomas def. Mike Lemaire via KO at 1:06 of Rd. 3

Josh Jauncey def. Jae-Gil Noh via KO at 1:14 of Rd. 2

Omari Boyd def. Ian Alexander via (T)KO at 2:17 of Rd. 3

KO of the Week: Danyo Ilunga vs. Sergio Pique

Danyo Ilunga is one of Kickboxing's rising stars and he is the also the man delivering the KO in our KO of the Week. In this bout we see Ilunga take on Sergio Pique at Merseburger Fight Night in Germany. The one night 4-man tournament pitted Ilunga vs. Pique in the tournament finals and it took Ilunga one round to end the fight. A perfectly timed left hook from Ilunga flattened out Pique in vicious fashion. It was definitely a sign of things to come for Ilunga. Sit back and enjoy this knockout by Ilunga and catch him in his upcoming bout at Glory 18.

Glory 15 Results and Recap

Glory 15 took place earlier today in Istanbul, Turkey and fans were excited for the Glory Light Heavyweight Tournament. Tyrone Spong, Gokhan Saki, and Nathan Corbett were the big draws with Saulo Cavalari looking to cement his name among the best fighters in the world.

The semi-final bouts saw Spong and Cavalari fight three hard rounds. Spong was awarded the decision win, but Cavalari showed the world he was not someone to be taken lightly. The other semi-final bout came to a shocking end when Gokhan Saki scored a (T)KO over Nathan Corbett in the first round. A big left hook from Saki connected and Corbett was soon covered in blood from his ear.

The final of the tournament unfortunately was not what fans were looking for. Before things could heat up between Saki and Spong a gruesome injury took place. Spong threw a low kick which Saki lifted his leg to check and Spong’s leg snapped and he fell backwards to the canvas. With the injury Saki won the Light Heavyweight Tournament and was crowned the Glory Light Heavyweight Champion.

In other action on the night Robin van Roosmalen and Marat Grigorian fought a hard close fight that went to van Roosmalen although a case could be made that Grigorian should have gotten the win. Danyo Ilunga also scored a big knockout over Romanian Andrei Stoica in the first round of their bout. A counter right from Ilunga dropped Stoica who in return could not answer the referee’s count. A solid win for Ilunga against a name like Stoica.

Results:

Glory Light Heavyweight Tournament Semi-Final Bouts
Gokhan Saki def. Nathan Corbett via (T)KO in Rd. 1
Tyrone Spong def. Saulo Cavalari via Decision

Glory Light Heavyweight Tournament Final Bout
Gokhan Saki def. Tyrone Spong via (T)KO (Injury) in Rd. 1

Super Fights
Danyo Ilunga def. Andrei Stoica via KO in Rd. 1
Robin van Roosmalen def. Marat Grigorian via Decision
Hedsy Gerges def. Jhnota Diniz via (T)KO in Rd. 2
Mourad Bouzidi def. Randy Blake via Decision  

Filip Verlinden def. Israel Adesanya via Decision
Jonatan Oliveira def. Atakan Arslan via Decision
Niclas Larsen def. Steve Moxon via (T)KO in Rd. 2
Yodkhunpon Sitmonchai def. Raz Sarkisjan via Decision

3 more fights confirmed for Glory 11 including Danyo Ilunga vs. Michael Duut and Gabriel Varga vs. Shane Oblonsky

Glory has confirmed three more fights for Glory 11. The event which takes place on October 12th in Chicago, IL has added Danyo Ilunga vs. Michael Duut, Gabriel Varga vs. Shane Oblonsky, and Steve Moxon vs. Reece McAllister.

Ilunga and Duut will be returning to action since the Glory 9 light heavyweight tournament, both men lost to eventual champion Tyrone Spong in the tournament. In the tournament opening round Duut knocked Spong down in the opening seconds of their fight before being knocked out by Spong 30 seconds into the fight. Ilunga made it to the finals and lost due to a controversial referee stoppage 16 seconds into the fight.

Varga last competed at Glory 8 in Japan and had a good showing at the tournament. He won his opening round fight against Abdellah Ezbiri and then lost by decision to eventual tournament winner Yuta Kubo. Oblonsky will be looking to get back in action as he has not competed since a decision win over Jose Palacios in early 2012.

Fight Card:

Heavyweight Tournament

Daniel Ghita vs. Anderson Silva

Gokhan Saki vs. Rico Verhoeven

Tournament Reserve Bout

Errol Zimmerman vs. Hesdy Gerges

Super Fights

Nathan Corbett vs. Tyrone Spong

Joseph Valtellini vs. Karim Ghajji

Danyo Ilunga vs. Michael Duut

Gabriel Varga vs. Shane Oblonsky

Steve Moxon vs. Reece McAllister

Filip Verlinden vs. Saulo Cavalari

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

Tyrone Spong confirmed as final participant for Glory 9 light heavywieght tournament in New York

Tyrone Spong has been rumored to be on the June 22nd Glory 9 card in New York, and today Glory has officially confirmed that Spong will indeed be fighting at Glory 9. Spong will be part of the one night 8-man light heavyweight tournament taking place at Glory 9. 

Spong last competed in Kickboxing at Glory 5 when he knocked out Remy Bonjasky. Spong joins a tournament field that includes Michael Duut, Steve Mckinnon, Mourad Bouzidi, Filip Verlinden, Danyo Ilunga, Brian Collette, and Dustin Jacoby.

Other bouts slated for Glory 9 are Daniel Ghita vs. Brice Guidon, Joseph Valtellini vs. Francois Ambang, and Brett Hlavacek vs. Paul Malfort. All of the action will take place at the Hammerstien Ballroom.

HARD-HITTING SUPERSTAR TYRONE SPONG

ENTERS GLORY 9 NEW YORK

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT KICKBOXING TOURNAMENT

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

FOR HISTORIC, STAR-STUDDED EVENT AT

MANHATTAN’S HAMMERSTEIN BALLROOM

ON SATURDAY, JUNE 22

SINGAPORE (May 7, 2013) – Twenty-seven year-old martial arts fighting superstar Tyrone “King of the Ring” Spong (69-6-1 43 KOs) of Boca Raton, Fla. via Suriname will compete in the one-night, single-elimination GLORY 9 New York tournament featuring a lineup of the world’s top light heavyweight (209 pounds/95 kilograms) kickboxers, at Hammerstein Ballroom at Manhattan Center in New York City on Saturday, June 22, Glory Sports International (GSI) announced today.

“We are excited to enter Tyrone into this historic, first GLORY championship series event in the U.S. that will determine who is physically and mentally the top athlete in kickboxing’s light heavyweight division,” said Glory Sports International CEO Andrew Whitaker. 

“Tyrone’s recent performances in the ring have distinguished him as one of the best and most powerful martial arts fighters in the world who can showcase our great sport at its highest level,” continued Whitaker, “so we look forward to seeing him compete against the other superstars who have been enlisted for action in the tournament.”

In his last GLORY start on March 23, Spong, a member of the vaunted Blackzilians fight squad that boasts the likes of fellow martial arts fighting greats Rashad Evans, Alistair Overeem and Vitor Belfort, triggered a changing of the guard in the ring at ExCel Arena in London, England, decimating Remy “The Flying Gentleman” Bonjasky, a three-time champion of the old K-1 series and one of kickboxing’s greatest athletes of all time, with a vicious right hook in the second round (2:02) of their highly-anticipated main event showdown.

The explosive KO marked Spong’s fifth consecutive kickboxing victory.  One fight prior, on June 30, 2012, Spong toppled another icon of the sport and future Hall of Famer, Peter Aerts, scoring a thunderous KO on Aerts in the third round (2:10) of their matchup in Brussels, Belgium.

Since turning professional as a middleweight in 2003 and winning 12 fights that year, Spong, a former protégé of retired heavyweight kickboxing legend Ernesto Hoost, has since climbed his way to the top in four different weight divisions.  He has faced and defeated a host of top-ranked rivals in addition to Bonjasky and Aerts, including Kaoklai Kaennorsing, Ray Sefo and Melvin Manhoef. 

Tickets for GLORY 9 New York, priced from $48 (plus handling fees), are on sale at all Ticketmaster locations, online at Ticketmaster.com and charge-by-phone at 800-745-3000.

Also slated for battle in the star-studded, eight-man single-elimination tournament, are hard-hitting KO artist Brian Collette (19-1, 16 KOs) of Norfolk, Va.; developmental Road To GLORY USA light heavyweight tournament winner Dustin Jacoby (9-3, 7 KOs) of Arenzville, Illin.; four-time world champion Danyo Ilunga (51-4, 41 KOs) of Germany; Muay Thai sensation Filip Verlinden (40-9-1, 16 KOs) of Belgium; Aerts-protégé Mourad “The Silent Power” Bouzidi (75-20-2, 34 KOs) of Tunisia; world Muay Thai and Karate champion Steve McKinnon (42-5, 29 KOs) of Australia; and Michael Duut (38-3, 17 KOs) of The Netherlands.

The GLORY 9 New York light heavyweight tournament’s quarterfinal stage matchups will be announced soon.

In one of several Superfights also scheduled for the event, heavyweight superstar and former secret service agent Daniel “The Savage Samurai” Ghita (46-9, 35 KOs) of Romania will face Muay Thai champion Brice Guidon (28-8, 13 KOs) of France.

In other Superfight action, hard-hitting “Bazooka” Joseph Valtellini (8-1, 7 KOs) of Toronto, Ontario Canada will square off with fellow rising star Francois Ambang (9-2, 4 KOs) of Mechanicsville, Va. in a welterweight (170 pounds/77 kilograms) matchup. 

Valtellini has earned six of his eight professional career victories in New York.   Ambang emerged the winner of the development, eight-man, developmental Road To GLORY USA tournament, created to identify new talent and potential future champions for GLORY’s championship series, at New York City’s Capitale on March 22.

Phil Nurse protégé Brett Hlavacek (8-1, 3 KOs) of New York, N.Y., the runner-up in the developmental Road To GLORY USA  tournament on March 22, will face three-time Muay Thai titlist Paul Marfort (10-5, 4 KOs) of Orlando, Fla. at welterweight. 

Additional Superfights will be announced soon.

Doors at Hammerstein Ballroom will open at 5 p.m. EST and the first preliminary bout will begin at 6 p.m.

For more information, visit www.gloryworldseries.com.

Glory 9 set for New York on June 22nd with light heavyweight tournament, Ghita vs. Guidon and Valtellini vs. Ambang set as super fights

Glory has officially announced that they will be headed to New York. Glory 9 will take place at the Hammerstein Ballroom on June 22, and will feature and eight-man light heavyweight tournament. In addition to the tournament three super fights have been made official, Daniel Ghita vs. Brice Guidon, Joseph Valtellini vs. Francois Ambang, and Brett Hlavacek vs. Paul Malfort.

Ghita will be returning to action after his recent (T)KO loss to Gokhan Saki at Glory 6. Guidon will be returning to action since his loss to Semmy Schilt in the Glory Heavyweight Grand Slam this December. Both fighters have lost their last two fights, and will undoubtedly be doing everything in their power come fight time to avoid suffering a third consecutive loss.
 

Canadian Joseph Valtellini was last in action when he made his Glory debut at Glory 6. Valtellini scored a (T)KO over seasoned veteran Murat Durekci. Ambang was last seen in the Road to Glory middleweight tournament in which he bested seven other fighters to be declared the Road to Glory middleweight champion. Both fighters are known for their knockout power and this should be and exciting fight with fireworks.

Hlavacek returns to action after falling short in the finals of the Road to Glory middleweight tournament. Hlavacek will be taking on Florida’s Paul Malfort.

Competitors for the light heavyweight tournament currently include Brian Collette, Danyo Ilunga, Filip Verlinden, Mourad Bouzidi, Steve McKinnon, and Koichi.

You can read the official press release form Glory below.

GLORY HITS NEW YORK CITY’S HAMMERSTEIN BALLROOM WITH WORLD-CLASS KICKBOXING EVENT FEATURING

EIGHT-MAN, LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT TOURNAMENT

SATURDAY, JUNE 22

PLUS SUPERFIGHTS:

DANIEL GHITA VS. BRICE GUIDON

JOSEPH VALTELLINI VS. FRANCOIS AMBANG

BRETT HLAVACEK VS. PAUL MARFORT

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

SINGAPORE (April 23, 2013) – GLORY, the world’s premier kickboxing league that is home to the greatest martial arts stand-up fighters on the planet, today announced that it will bring its championship fight series to The United States for the first time ever with a one-night, eight-man, light heavyweight (209 pounds/95 kilograms) tournament at Hammerstein Ballroom at Manhattan Center in New York City on Saturday, June 22. 

In one of several Superfights also scheduled for the event, heavyweight superstar and former secret service agent Daniel “The Savage Samurai” Ghita (46-9, 35 KOs) of Romania will collide with Muay Thai champion Brice Guidon (28-8, 13 KOs) of France. 

Tickets for GLORY 9 New York, priced from $48 (plus handling fees), are on sale at all Ticketmaster locations, online at Ticketmaster.com and charge-by-phone at 800-745-3000.

“We are thrilled to kick off the expansion of GLORY’s world championship kickboxing series to the U.S. with such a high-caliber event in the sports and entertainment epicenter that is New York City,” said GLORY Sports International CEO Andrew Whitaker.  “We are looking forward to establishing the GLORY brand in the U.S. with this debut event that will showcase the product for what it is – the most exciting and elite form of world-class kickboxing, or martial arts stand-up fighting.”

Slated for battle in the single-elimination tournament, thus far, are hard-hitting KO artist Brian Collette (19-1, 16 KOs) of Norfolk, Va.; four-time world champion Danyo Ilunga (51-4, 41 KOs) of Germany; Muay Thai sensation Filip Verlinden (40-9-1, 16 KOs) of Belgium; Peter Aerts-protégé Mourad “The Silent Power” Bouzidi (75-20-2, 34 KOs) of Tunisia; world Muay Thai and Karate champion Steve McKinnon (42-5, 29 KOs) of Australia and granite chinned Koichi (26-8-1, 15 KOs) of Japan   The remaining two tournament competitors will be announced soon.

In other Superfight action, hard-hitting “Bazooka” Joseph Valtellini (8-1, 7 KOs) of Toronto, Ontario Canada will square off with fellow rising star Francois Ambang (9-2, 4 KOs) of Mechanicsville, Va. in a welterweight (170 pounds/77 kilograms) matchup and Phil Nurse protégé Brett Hlavacek (8-1, 3 KOs) of New York, N.Y. will face three-time Muay Thi titlist Paul Marfort (10-5, 4 KOs) of Orlando, Fla. at welterweight. 

The 27-year-old Valtellini, a high school teacher by day, has become a familiar face in New York, winning six of his pro Muay Thai bouts in The Big Apple, all by way of (T)KO.  Valtellini, who also holds a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, made a splash, first start in the GLORY ring in Istanbul, Turkey on April 6, stopping Murat Direkci, a veteran with more than 10 times as many fights under his belt than Valtellini, in the third round of their matchup.

Ambang, a 26-year-old native of Cameroon, made a mark in New York City for the first time on March 22, winning the one-night, eight-man development Road To GLORY USA welterweight tournament at Capitale to earn a multi-fight contract with GLORY.  Using heavy body attacks, Ambang defeated three consecutive opponents – two by way of TKO – including a first round stoppage of Hlavacek in the tournament’s championship round.

The 29-year-old Hlavacek reached the championship round of the tournament after scoring a stunning, 41-second TKO on Ryan Parker in the quarterfinal stage of the eight-man affair and earning a unanimous decision over Eric Utsch in the semifinal stage. 

A draw to determine the GLORY 9 New York light heavyweight tournament’s quarterfinal stage matchups will be held on a date to be announced soon.

Doors at Hammerstein Ballroom will open at 5 p.m. EST and the first preliminary bout will begin at 6 p.m.

For more information, visit www.gloryworldseries.com.