On Friday, May 17, GLORY Kickboxing hosted its 65th event from Central Studios in Utrecht, Netherlands.
In the main event of the event, reigning middleweight champion Alex Pereira put his belt on the line against former champion Jason Wilnis. The pair had met twice previously, with Wilnis topping the champion on both occasions. The Brazilian Pereira entered the title defense riding a four-fight winning streak. Holland’s Wilnis recently got back in the win column at GLORY 63 in Houston.
Gold was also be on the line in the co-main event as Thailand’s Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong faced a familiar foe in challenger Marat Grigorian. The bout marked the fifth meeting between two of the sport’s best lightweights, and third clash with the GLORY title at stake. Sitthichai had come out victorious on the scorecards in all four previous meetings. The pair most recently collided at GLORY 57 in China, with the champion retaining his belt via split decision.
The preliminary-card action kicked off live on the promotion’s YouTube page at 11:30 a.m. ET. The night’s SuperFight Series streamed live on UFC Fight Pass beginning at 1 p.m. ET, with the main card airing live at 3 p.m. ET, also on UFC Fight Pass.
Marat Grigorian def. Sitthichai Sitsongpeenong by unanimous decision (48-46, 49-45, 49-45, 49-45, 49-45) – for lightweight title
Donovan Wisse def. Yousri Belgaroui by unanimous decision (29-27×5)
Eyevan Danenberg def. Yassine Ahaggan by TKO (knee to the body). Round 1, 1:51
Tyjani Beztati def. Josh Jauncey by unanimous decision (29-28×5)
Cihad Kepenek def. Junior Tafa by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
Thong Fairtex def. Bailey Sugden by split decision (30-27, 27-30, 28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Luke Whelan def. Itay Gershon by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
Sofia Olofsson def. Christi Brereton by split decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27, 28-29, 29-28)
Kevin van Heeckeren def. Matt Baker by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Ammari Diedrick def. Dani Traoré by split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Jos van Belzen def. Percy de Maeyer by TKO (three knockdowns). Round 1, 2:08