Kwasi vs Hristov : Fight preview by unibet

The preview of GLORY 98’s co-main event is powered by Unibet.

This saturday night, February 22, GLORY will kick-off its 2025 calendar with a stacked and action-packed fight card live from the sold-out RTM Stage in Rotterdam. This event will feature 12 incredible bouts and will be headlined by the highly anticipated return of Jamal Ben Saddik (36-9, 29 KO) who will be facing the Estonian powerhouse Uku Jurjendal (20-9, 16 KO). The GLORY welterweight belt is on the line in the co-main event. The champion Chico Kwasi (43-5-1, 23 KO) is set to defend his title against number 2 ranked welterweight Teodor Hristov (18-3, 7 KO). 

This title fight is as skilled as they come. Both fighters have never experienced defeat inside the GLORY ring and one of them will fall for the very first time on February 22. Chico Kwasi won the GLORY title back at GLORY 91 where he defeated Endy Semeleer (37-3, 18 KO) by TKO. He then defended his belt at GLORY 96 against Tyjani Beztati (27-4-1, 9 KO), a bout that ended in a very competitive draw. Meanwhile, Teodor Hristov was climbing the GLORY rankings. With 4 consecutive wins in just over 2 years, he has earned his shot by beating top contenders such as Murthel Groenhart (70-26-3, 40 KO), Robin Ciric (23-8, 7 KO) and Jay Overmeer (30-8, 16 KO). 

Both men are going to look at establishing their own pace. They are both elite when it comes to striking without getting hit in return and the winner of that fight will be the one who manages to keep it that way. Of course, Hristov will have to get around Chico’s range and he has shown multiple times that he is more than capable of finding his way through an opponent’s guard. The champion will need to be careful about Hristov’s movement as the Bulgarian is a great pocket boxer and Kwasi does not want to let him get close. 

Chico will need to use his jabs and kicks to keep Hristov guessing, punishing the Bulgarian’s attempt at closing range and moving around him constantly as he did against Endy Semeeler in Paris. He has showcased multiple times how effective he can be at countering but Hristov’s head movements while moving forward are among the very best of the division and it won’t be an easy task to keep him at bay. 

This should be a very high-paced fight but it will also be the first time the challenger prepares for a full 15 minute bout. Chico went to a decision against Tyjani Beztati and he showcased very good pacing and good stamina management. The way Hristov will approach this fight might vary from his usual relentless style and it is possible that we witness a more composed version of the Bulgarian.