GLORY’s light heavyweight title picture took a sharp turn on Tuesday, and it has opened the door for history.
Reigning GLORY middleweight world champion Donovan Wisse will move up a division to challenge Bahram Rajabzadeh for the vacant GLORY light heavyweight title at GLORY 107 on Apr. 25 at RTM Stage in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The bout was made official following the promotion’s decision to strip Tarik Khbabez of the title after he declined a mandated rematch with Rajabzadeh.
Khbabez and Rajabzadeh first met last October at GLORY 104, producing one of the most memorable contests of 2025. The fight ultimately earned Fight of the Year honors, with Khbabez retaining the belt after a razor-thin majority decision. A rematch was widely expected, but GLORY confirmed that Khbabez rejected the bout despite committing to defend the title at GLORY 107.
“As the promotion, GLORY selects the matchups,” the organization said in its statement. “As a result, Tarik Khbabez has been stripped and Bahram Rajabzadeh will face Donovan Wisse for the vacant title.”
For Rajabzadeh, the title opportunity represents both persistence and redemption. Following the loss to Khbabez, he announced his retirement, a decision that proved short-lived. He returned this past weekend at GLORY 105 and erased any lingering doubts with a stunning 31-second knockout of Cristian Ristea. Now 73-6 with 65 knockouts, Rajabzadeh is once again on the brink of a GLORY championship that has narrowly eluded him since his breakout run in 2023.
Standing in his way is one of the most dominant champions in GLORY today.
Wisse enters the matchup as the reigning middleweight king and one of the promotion’s pound-for-pound standouts. The 28-year-old recently broke Alex Pereira’s all-time record for middleweight title defenses, securing his sixth consecutive defense after capturing the belt in 2022. Now, he has the opportunity to cement his legacy even further by chasing a second world title.
Should Wisse defeat Rajabzadeh, he would become just the third multi-division champion in GLORY history and the first to accomplish the feat since Pereira did so in 2021.
GLORY 107 will now be headlined by a clash that carries both championship stakes and historical significance, as one man looks to finally claim his first world title, and another attempts to carve his name alongside the sport’s elite.