There were six fights in the GLORY Superfight Series on Saturday as a mix of rising stars, established names and top contenders threw down in a bid to earn the ranking points which will power them up their division tables and into contention for title shots and tournament
Superfight Series bouts are released for free and in full via the GloryWorldSeries.com website shortly after they take place - bookmark the site and check the video section for updates.
Yodkhunpon Sittmonchai vs. Raz Sarkisjan
Featherweight
There was a lot on the line for these two as both were making their GLORY debuts and wanted to impress. Yodkhunpon came in with the bigger reputation, thanks to his standing on the Muay Thai circuit in his native Thailand, but those in the know remembered the promise Sarkisjan showed before his recent layoff.
It was an even match but several things stood out. One, Sarkisjan has absolutely blurring speed with his hands. It has to be seen to be believed. Two, Yodkhunpon has incredible balance and timing. Some of his push-kicks sent Sarkisjan clean across the ring.
In Thailand the fighters have a habit of 'throwing away' the first round and feeling each other out. Sarkisjan took that slow approach in round one here and it nearly cost him as Sarkisjan racked up points. In the third Yodkhunpon made up for lost time though, going after Sarkisjan and scoring a knockdown.
That round was in the bag for him but he kept the pace up and really took control, making this the only clear round that he won. With round one Sarkisjan's and round three Yodkhunpon's, the middle frame could go either way.
It was a tough one for the judges, who ended up returning a split-decision in Yodkhunpon's favor. One judge had it a draw at 28-28 while the other two narrowly shaded it for Yodkhunpon, giving him a final score of 29-28.
Steve Moxon vs. Niclas Larsen
Lightweight
Before the fight, Moxon had some less than complimentarry things to say about the Danish champion's skill level. He also categorized him as less skilled than other opponents he had faced and beaten.
Larsen took offence and set out to show him otherwise. The result was a fight that turned into a war pretty much from the off. They got into striking range right away and stayed there for the duration, Larsen using his rangy kicks and Moxon looking to get inside and land those knockout bombs of his.
Certain successes aside, he mostly struggled to do so; Larsen did a very good job of keeping the fight at the range he wanted it, frustrating Moxons efforts to get in on him. All the while he was landing shots of his own with precision.
At the mid-point of the second round Larsen rocked Moxon and staggered him into a corner. Then he flicked the kill-switch and went all out for the finish. A murderous flurry of hooks, uppercuts and knees buffeted Moxon until the final crushing blows sent him falling slowly sideways and onto his knees for Larsen's second GLORY win and his first by TKO.
Jhonata Oliveira vs. Atakan Arslan
Lightweight
The Turkish flag was out in force for local hero Arslan, who also includes 'actor' and 'model' among his portfolio of revenue streams. The whole arena was behind him and rose to it in the first round with a mixture of aggressive attacks and a bit of showboating.
There were flying knees aplenty from Arslan in the first and second round, prompting Oliveira to reach into his own bag of tricks for spinning heel kicks and nasty-looking head-kicks. Sadly neither scored a finish with their platinum-card moves. They were pulling out the kind of stuff which would draw a million views on YouTube within a week if it had resulted in a KO.
Atakan did a good job of playing to his range advantage but maybe wasted too much energy showboating. Between flying knees and dropping his hands to dance around, he burned a lot of gas off which he would have been better off saving for the third round.
Because by round three Arslan was really tired and was showing it. Oliveira was able to keep up a work rate, throwing combinations while Arslan had been reduced to single shots and sloppy defensive
The end result was a unanimous decision for Oliveira and, surprisingly, the Turkish crowd applauded him warmly. Oliveira now goes 2-0 in GLORY following his successful debut at GLORY 5 LONDON last year, though with both wins by decision he isn't doing a lot to mark himself out as top contender material.
Filip Verlinden vs. Israel Adesanya
Middleweight
Filip Verlinden started his GLORY career as a heavyweight, but only because prior to GLORY you had to fight as a heavyweight if you wanted to make any money. Now that GLORY has six flagship weight-classes, he has been able to drop to his natural weight.
First he went to light-heavyweight but still felt he was able to drop more and this fight was his middleweight debut. It looks like he has found his natural weight class now. His energy levels seemed fine and for the first time he was the one doing the outsizing of his GLORY
He was obviously looking to make a statement here, with numerous head kick efforts and double-hooks aimed at taking Adesanya out. He couldn't quite find the mark, though that has as much to do with Adesanya's awkwardness as anything. The New Zealand fighter is one of the twitchiest, stance-switching fighters who has ever graced the GLORY ring.
He did some things well and scored some clean points here and there but overall it was Verlinden who had control and was threatening the knockout. 'The Belgian Bull' never really seemed under pressure and that was reflected in all three judges giving him the victory by scores of 30-27 for a unanimous decision.
Mourad Bouzidi vs. Randy 'Boom Boom' Blake
Light-Heavyweight
This was Bouzidi's 100th career fight but as we saw in his last fight, which saw him receive a bad KO on what was his 30th birthday, the fight game is no respecter of occasion.
Tonight he looked like a different fighter to the one who plodded into the ring at GLORY 12 NEW YORK, faster and sharper. And his opponent Randy 'Boom Boom' Blake didn't have the scary strength and power that Saulo Cavalari used to lay him out.
Bouzidi also found an advantage in Blake's stance. His karate background means he has a tendency to stand somewhat sideways and that means he is wide open to leg kicks. Bouzidi was able to capitalize again and again, destroying Blake's base and balance repeatedly, preventing him getting good offense going.
Blake was active but didn't have the power to rattle Bouzidi, whereas Bouzidi was able to open a couple of bad cuts on Blake over the course of the fight. By round three the win was clearly in the bag but Bouzidi couldn't find the finish. He had to content himself with a unanimous decision win, much welcomed given his recent results.
Hesdy Gerges vs. Jhonata Diniz
Heavyweight
This clash of heavyweights never looked likely to go the distance. From the opening bell, the two set about each other in a way that suggested the ring card girls wouldn't have much to do for their bout.The fact that it went to the end of the second round is really testament to Diniz's doggedness and determination.
Gerges is a big heavyweight while Diniz is at the smaller end of the scale. Having faced the likes of Badr Hari, you have to bring a lot of power to intimidate Gerges. That wasn't something Diniz had, so he quickly found himself facing a comfortable Gerges who was ready to click into gear.
The work from Gerges wasn't particularly flamboyant. Power-combinations which end on a leg kick are what he does, and he did it well tonight. Diniz took kicks to his lead leg over and over. From a fighter the size and weight of Gerges, that will quickly add
Diniz was sore by the end of the first round, badly limping by the end of the second. And because he was paying so much attention to trying to anticipate and avoid the next leg kick, he was leaving himself open for punches to the head. This is a classic Dutch Kickboxing gambit and it worked perfectly on Diniz.
The young Brazilian has had some tough fights in GLORY - Daniel Ghita among them - and has been on a steep learning curve. He has shown improvement from fight to fight but Gerges was far beyond him tonight and he retired on his stool before the third round was due to start, unable to stand on his left leg.
