French talent has been pouring into the GLORY ranks over the past twelve months and has proved itself to be of a very high level. The latest addition to the roster is Karim 'The Feline' Benmansour, a welterweight who has made his mark on the national scene and has now received a call-up to the world's premier kickboxing league.
He is a participant in the GLORY 31 AMSTERDAM Welterweight Contender Tournament and his semi-final opponent is Murthel Groenhart, which is about as tough as GLORY debuts come. Groenhart came within a whisker of capturing the title at the last Amsterdam event, GLORY 26, and plenty of fans still think it should have been him rather than Nieky Holzken who should have been declared the winner.
So, Benmansour is walking straight into the lion's den for his debut. But he can win? To find out what his chances might be, we spoke to a French sports reporter. Romain Terpman writes for French newspaper La Provence and has followed Benmanour's career for a number of years.
“In my opinion Karim is totally ready for GLORY, indeed maybe even overdue. He is now 29 years old and has the maturity and experience to compete at this level and on a big show like this,” he says.
“Actually I think that Karim may be one of the most underrated fighters at the moment, relative to his level. It's always difficult to make a prediction, especially for a top-level tournament like this one, but I expect he will deliver a career-best performance because he has been waiting for an opportunity like this and he deserves it.
“This guy is smart, relaxed and very quiet outside the ring. He's always smiling; fans like him because he is open to them before and after the show. But opponents need to be careful because he is not a joker. Watch him just before the fight and see how his face turns serious and he goes into warrior mode.”
According to Terpman, one of Benmansour's best assets is the team he trains with.
“His team is Boxing Fighters System in the city of Nîmes and in five years with them he has undergone huge development. He's changed his way of working, training and maybe even attitude to life in general. He went there as a good kickboxer and now he is one of the best in his category worldwide,” he says.
“He has done real work in the past few years. Habib Bakir is his main trainer and Sébastien Gimenez, a former professional soccer goalkeeper in the French second division, is his physical conditioning trainer. The squad's motto is 'On craint tout le monde, mais on n'a peur de personne'. Roughly translated, 'Everyone fears us, but we fear no one'.
“One of his key strengths for me is the rapport he has with his corner team . They are very attentive and very experienced; he is so tuned in to them that if they call for him to change tactics mid-fight, he can do it. In terms of his output he is very complete, good hands and good kicks. He is always moving, changing angle and position. His nickname is 'The Cat' so that gives you a good idea of his style.”
GLORY 31 AMSTERDAM takes place Saturday, June 25 at the RAI Amsterdam. The main event features Robin van Roosmalen defending the lightweight title in a grudge rematch with Sittichai Sitsongpeenong, winner of two Lightweight Contender Tournaments.