On Jun. 8, GLORY Kickboxing is sending their light heavyweight division into a Grand Prix. On X, the organization confirmed the last entrant is the reigning champion Tarik Khbabez of Morocco. The tournament goes down live from Rotterdam in the Netherlands.
GLORY Light Heavyweight Grand Prix
The eight fighters entered in the light heavyweight tournament are:
Tarik Khbabez
Donegi Abena
Sergej Maslobojev
Stefan Latescu
Bahram Rajabzadeh
Bogdan Stoica
Ibrahim El Bouni
Pascal Toure
Tarik Khbabez, of Morocco, is the current division world champion. he captured the title earlier this year in a close match against Donegi Abena. Khbabez is a forward-pressure fighter who has a world of experience across light heavyweight and heavyweight in kickboxing.
The Surinamese-Dutch Donegi Abena is a quick fighter with sharp hands. He is the former champion of the division who earned the division title against Sergej Maslobojev by way of leg cut. Abena is one of the youngest fighters to compete in GLORY having made his debut before he was even 20 years old.
Lithuania’s Sergej Maslobojev is a veteran kickboxer who is a former champion of the division. He won the vacant title in a fight of the year contender against Tarik Khbabez in 2022. Maslobojev has notable wins over fighters such as Antonio Plazibat, Bahram Rajabzadeh, Khbabez, among others.
Romania’s Stefan Latescu is a young striker with dynamite in his hands. At only 22 years old, he has won the majority of his fights by way of knockout. Currently, he is on a ten fight win streak with seven of these being won by knockout.
Bahram Rajabzadeh, of Azerbaijan, is one of the most exciting fighters in combat sports. He is an aggressive brawler who is always aiming for the knockout. Most recently, he is coming off a dominant knockout win in Paris, France against Kevin Oumar. Prior to that, he participated in the GLORY Heavyweight Grand Prix. The striker has notable wins against Uku Jürjendal, Kevin “Cookie” Tariq Osaro, Mohammed Amine, and Luis Tavares, among others.
Bogdan Stoica, of Romania, is a highly experienced fighter with a Wushu background. Formerly, he held titles in Enfusion, WAKO, and elsewhere. In GLORY, his most recent win was against Luis Tavares.
The Moroccan-Dutch Ibrahim El Bouni is looking for redemption in this Grand Prix. After putting together four consecutive wins in GLORY, he sustained a loss in a title eliminator match against Latescu.
The French-born Pascal Toure is an impressive striker who has held titles in WKN and elsewhere. He qualified for the tournament as he defeated Mohamed Amine by split decision in Paris, France.
After the success of the heavyweight Grand Prix, won by Rico Verhoeven, GLORY is looking to continue with the light heavyweight division. With violent entrants, such as Stefan Latescu and Bahram Rajabzadeh, in addition to former champions, Tarik Khbabez, Donegi Abena, and Sergej Maslobojev, the one-night Grand Prix is bound to create fireworks.