Several fighters from the GLORY World Series staged open workouts in Los Angeles today ahead of this weekend’s GLORY 10 LOS ANGELES event, which takes place Saturday September 28 at the Citizen Bank Arena in Ontario, CA.
The workouts took place at The Yard Muay Thai gym in downtown Los Angeles. The gym is the home of Joe ‘Stitch ‘Em Up’ Schilling (14-4, 10 KO’s), one of the most accomplished fighters on the American circuit. He is taking part in this weekend’s Middleweight Championship Tournament.
Tournament reserve fighter Wayne Barrett (2-0, 2 KO’s), a New York man now based in Georgia, will get a call-up to the tournament final if he wins his match and one of the finalists cannot continue. His 19-1 amateur record, 15 of those wins inside the distance, has prepared him well for his GLORY career.
Also working out for the assembled media and fans were lightweight contenders Robin Van Roosmalen (29-5, 19 KO’s) and Shemsi Beqiri (72-8, 31 KO’s), who headline this Saturday’s event. Van Roosmalen is ranked #2 in the world at 70 kilograms (154lbs) while Beqiri is ranked #5.
Both are looking to form part of the upcoming December lightweight tournament, which will place the top four ranked fighters against each other. Beqiri needs to get a win this Saturday to crack the top four and get a chance at the tournament’s big money prize.
Ky Hollenbeck (44-3, 23 KO’s), a training partner of Schilling’s, is a late entrant to the card. He faces one-time K-1 MAX tournament winner Albert ‘The Hurricane’ Kraus (73-16-3, 43 KO’s). He might be taking the fight on short notice but it was clear from his workout that he is in excellent condition and possesses incredible flexibility.
GLORY debutant Jermaine Soto - a native of the local San Fernando Valley region - wowed observers with a dynamic workout which included leaping 720-degree ‘tornado kicks’. Soto is a former international Tae Kwon Do champion and says that there is every chance of him pulling off such a kick on Saturday night.
“Absolutely,” he says. “It’s all about keeping people guessing. If they know you can pull off any technique at any given time it makes them hesitant. It’s all about the timing, so we’ll have to see what happens in the fight.”
Here’s what the fighters at today’s open workout had to say:
ROBIN VAN ROOSMALEN
“Ever since I started fighting it was always my dream to fight in two places: Japan and the USA. I fought in Japan recently and now I’m fighting in the USA at last, so it’s a dream come true.”
“Shemsi is a good opponent; he’s always been high in the rankings. He’s a complete fighter, very fast but he doesn’t have as much power as me.”
“Right now the only thing I am thinking about is winning this fight. Then I can think about the tournament. But I think I will be in the tournament for sure.”
SHEMSI BEQIRI
“I’m really happy to be in America. The weather is great, the food is good and the people are really nice. I am looking forward to putting on a show for the fans on Saturday night.”
“Robin is a great fighter. Guys like him are the future of the sport. He’s fit, powerful, good conditioning. It’s going to be an interesting fight.”
[laughing] “I’m not going to tell you any tactics for the fight. I have some, but they are secret. I’ll tell you after the fight.”
KY HOLLENBECK
“I’m stepping in on short notice but I’m ready, I’ve been in training and I’m in good condition. I’m really excited to be facing Kraus. I’ve not fought for a while now and I want to get back on track with a big win and show people what I am all about.”
WAYNE BARRETT
“In Georgia I train a lot with Douglas Lima, he fights for Bellator. He may only be 170lbs but he hits really, really hard. Brian Stann as well. Those two guys really helped with my mental game as well. From New York, Uriah Hall. I never trained with anyone as fast as that guy, and he is really technical too.
“I also train with Jarrell ‘Big Baby’ Miller, who just came off a very controversial loss to Mirko ‘CroCop’ Filipovic in Croatia recently. He is 265lbs, so if anyone thinks they are going to frighten me with power they better think again.
“I’m ready for anyone who thinks they are going to bully me or that they are more technical than me or faster than me. I am very fast, a lot of people underestimate my speed, and I hit a lot harder than people expect.”
