GLORY kickboxing will return to pay-per-view on Saturday, December 9 with ‘GLORY Redemption’ at Ahoy Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
The main event, which was announced back in July, will be a heavyweight title fight between current champion Rico Verhoeven (51-10) and No.2-ranked heavyweight Jamal Ben Saddik (32-5).
Verhoeven, 28, is coming off a non-title unanimous decision win over Ismael Lazaar, which took place at GLORY 41. Prior to that, Verhoeven defeated Badr Hari by TKO at GLORY: Collision after Hari suffered an arm injury and could not continue. Verhoeven will be facing Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva at GLORY 46 on October 14 in a three-round non-title bout.
Meanwhile, Saddik, 26, defeated Guto Inocente by unanimous decision at GLORY 39 in his last bout. After the victory over Inocente, which took place back in March, “The Goliath” issued a challenge to Verhoeven during his post-fight interview. The champion was a guest commentator during the bout and entered the ring to accept Saddik’s challenge and the two squared off. The bout was originally targeted for May, but an injury to Saddik pushed it back.
Verhoeven and Saddik fought for the first time back in 2013 for the “It’s Showtime” promotion. Saddik won the bout in the second round via TKO. Since that fight took place, Verhoeven has gone on to win the GLORY heavyweight title, defend his title five consecutive times and become the best heavyweight kickboxer on the planet. Saddik, meanwhile, has posted a respectable GLORY record of 7-4 and is currently on a four-fight winning streak.
Nieky Holzken among other big Dutch names added to GLORY Redemption
Also fighting on the GLORY Redemption card will be former welterweight champion Nieky Holzken (90-13), who is currently on the mend with injuries to his shin and foot, which forced him off the GLORY 45 fight card. An opponent for Holzken has not yet been named.
Aside from the GLORY Redemption pay-per-view, there will be two additional fight cards: GLORY 49 and the GLORY 49 Superfight Series.
Headlining the GLORY 49 Superfight Series will be a heavyweight tilt between Ismael Londt (39-7) and D’Angelo Marshall (16-2).
The lone bout announced for GLORY 49 is a lightweight contest between Marat Grigorian (51-10-2) and Christian Baya (59-5-1). GLORY 49 is expected to be headlined by a welterweight title bout and will also include a one-night, four-man, lightweight “Contender” tournament.
