NEW FIGHTS CONFIRMED FOR GL12

Two fights have today been confirmed for GLORY 12 NEW YORK, which takes place at Madison Square Garden in New York on Saturday, November 23.

The event’s headline bout will be a clash of heavyweight knockout machines as Jamal ‘The Goliath’ Ben Saddik faces Australian puncher Ben Edwards in a fight which is unlikely to go the distance.

A reserve match for the evening’s Lightweight Championship Tournament has also been confirmed. Ky Hollenbeck and Shemsi Beqiri will battle it out for the chance to be called up to the tournament final if for any reason one of the finalists is unable to continue.

“These two fights are great pieces of matchmaking. They guarantee exciting battles for the fans,” says Cor Hemmers, GLORY’s Head of Talent Relations.

“In one match you have two heavyweights looking to make their mark; they are sure to try and end their fight early. In the other you have one of America’s top prospects trying to prove a point against a fighter who has consistently faced and beaten the best names on the world circuit.”

Jamal ‘The Goliath’ Ben Saddik (24-3, 20 KO’s) is among the biggest fighters on the GLORY roster both in weight and height. Standing 6’7" (2.05cm) and weighing 276lbs (125kg) it is no surprise that 20 of his 24 career wins have been by way of knockout or TKO.

Ben Saddik has beaten some big names in his GLORY run, including three-time K-1 champion Remy Bonjasky. He has also featured in two ‘Fight of the Year’ contenders - one against Errol Zimmerman at GLORY 4 and one against Peter Aerts at GLORY 8.

Ben ‘The Guvner’ Edwards (35-9-3, 32 KO’s) fights out of the Bulldog Gym in Canberra, Australia. He holds an incredible 88% knockout ratio in his victories. He also broke Jerome Le Banner’s record for ‘Fastest K-1 Tournament Win’ when he stopped three opponents in a combined 3:28 back in 2010.

Edwards is a very big hitter even by heavyweight standards. Aside from his kickboxing career he also has a 3-0-1 professional boxing record. His kickboxing victories include Mighty Mo, Raul Catinas and fellow GLORY heavyweight Daniel Sam.

Ky Hollenbeck (45-3, 23 KO’s)  is flying the flag for the USA in the lightweight division. He is one of America’s top talents in the sport and proved as much at GLORY 10 LOS ANGELES when he put on a career-best performance to take an upset win in dominating fashion over Albert ‘The Hurricane’ Kraus.

Hollenbeck is now at #8 in the official world rankings but he isn’t content with that. He wants to show that the US has kickboxing talents which can rival any that Europe or Japan can produce. He made an example of Kraus - can he repeat the feat at GLORY 12?

Shemsi Beqiri (72-9, 31 KO’s) is ranked #5 in the world and is regarded as one of the fastest and most dogged fighters in the lightweight division. Beqiri loves getting exchanges with his opponents and he does so in technical fashion, having trained kickboxing at a high level since his teens.

He represents a huge test for Hollenbeck and he also brings a revenge angle into the fight. Beqiri’s trainer is also Albert Kraus’ trainer. Beqiri represents the SuperPro team and counts Kraus as a good friend. With vengeance and a tournament reserve spot in the process, we can expect an especially aggressive Beqiri.

GLORY 12 NEW YORK takes place Saturday November 23 at Madison Square Garden in New York, USA. The show features a four-man Lightweight Championship Tournament plus several fights in the GLORY Superfight Series.

GLORY 12 will air live on SPIKE TV. Fight fans in the US can also catch GLORY live on SPIKE TV this weekend when GLORY 11 CHICAGO takes place at the Sears Centre in Hoffman Estates, Illinois with a four-man Heavyweight Championship Tournament between Gokhan Saki, Daniel Ghita, Rico Verhoeven and Anderson ‘Braddock’ Silva.