Heavyweights headlined the GLORY 35 Superfight Series card in a battle with local flavor, as both Nicolas Wamba and Nordine Mahieddine are French nationals. This was a rematch; they fought back in 2011 and Mahieddine won by way of stoppage after opening a cut over Wamba's right eye.
It was a spirited encounter which went at a frantic pace by heavyweight standards. Wamba clearly was out for revenge as he brought the pressure to Mahieddine and he took a close first round by way of a higher work-rate and more varied combination work.
There was more of the same in the second round and plenty of heavy leather traded back and forth. Mahieddine was largely head-hunting while Wamba worked a wider variety of targets, including the body. That paid dividends as he sapped Mahieddine's gas tank and had him breathing heavily in the final minute.
In the final round Mahieddine rallied somewhat and made it a competitive frame at times but Wamba was not to be denied and largely maintained his dominance of the scoring on the way to a unanimous decision win.
Nicolas Wamba (47-7-0) def. Nordine Mahieddine (18-7-0), Unanimous Decision, (30-27, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
