Artem Vakhitov

Killer body shots are the name of the game when Artem Vakhitov is in town. The three-time Russian national champion is one of a select few kickboxers who has perfected the art of the fight-finishing body-blow.

Vakhitov won his first major competition aged 17, a national junior championship in his native Russia, and has been on the up ever since. His childhood style was karate but he quickly switched to Muay Thai, training and fighting out of the famous Kuzbass Muay Thai.

There he trains alongside world #1 middleweight Artem Levin, also a fan of body-shots. Vakhitov says that apart from Levin his favorite fighter is Mike Tyson, for his ferocity and his desire to finish all his opponents.

With the gloves off Vakhitov is a cultured fellow, a classically-trained pianist who can play to a professional standard. Mixing instruments and fighting seems to be a Russian thing. GLORY heavyweight Sergey Kharitonov is a highly-graded accordion player.