Alex Perreira knocks out at the last second and remains champion; Hari gets hurt and Rico wins the rematch

The biggest kickboxing event of the year had a full house and historic moments. GLORY Collision 2 brought together 31 thousand spectators this Saturday, at the Gelredome stadium, in Arnhem, Netherlands, to see the card filled with the cream of the sport, with the participation of three Brazilians and headlined by the rematch between Rico Verhoeven and Badr Hari.

The event also brought GLORY 74, a block with fights from the organization's linear numbered series, which featured middleweight champion (up to 85kg) Alex 'Poatan' Pereira in the main attraction against challenger Ertugrul Bayrak, from Turkey.

All it took was the bell ringing for the Brazilian to start framing his opponent in the ring. Bayrak landed good low kicks, but 'Poatan' countered with powerful crosses and direct counterattacks. Severely hit at least three times in the first few minutes, Bayrak soon lost his tactical plot and became a fixed target.

In the last second of the first round, the Brazilian landed a straight shot to the plexus followed by a left cross that hit his opponent's chin and knocked him out. The victory attested to the fifth defense of the category title for the champion. “I ended the year with three knockouts in three fights and two belts in different divisions. In 2020 I will continue to make history in this sport. It’s my life goal,” he stated.

Repetition?

The 'rematch of the decade' between heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven and Moroccan idol Badr Hari aimed to put an end to the rivalry that began three years ago, in the first edition of Collision. On that occasion, Hari broke his arm in the first round and the victory went to Rico.

This time the story felt different. The Moroccan started with everything and scored the first knockdown against the champion in the opening round, with a right cross. The Dutchman recovered well and evened out actions, but a high left kick once again took him to the canvas in the third round.

Hari continued the attack, but when trying a spinning kick, he injured his ankle and was no longer able to continue the fight. The technical knockout was declared and victory once again went to Verhoeven. “I'm not satisfied at all with my performance and how I won this fight. Let's face each other again soon. We need to resolve this once and for all. The fans deserve it,” said the champion.

More Brazilians

After two years, light heavyweight from Paraná Ariel Machado returned to GLORY, this time to face Dutchman Michael Duut. With a solid tactical standard, the Brazilian used good combinations to systematically break through his opponent's blocks, until achieving two knockdowns that guaranteed the final victory by unanimous decision.

Among the middleweights, Cesar Almeida debuted for the organization against second-ranked Donovan Wisse (Suriname); He soon surprised the kickboxer from São Paulo and knocked him down with a left cross. The Brazilian recovered and had a good second round, but his counterattack efficiency was once again dominant in the third, and the Surinamese guaranteed the victory on points.

Next event: GLORY 75, February 29th, in Utrecht (Netherlands).

Official Glory results

COLLISION 2

Rico Verhoeven defeated Badr Hari via technical knockout

Luis Tavares defeated Stephane Susperregui by unanimous decision

Mohamed Jaraya defeated Massaro Glunder via unanimous decision

Zakkaria Zouggary defeated Asa Ten Pow via unanimous decision

GLORY 74

Alex Pereira beat Ertugrul Bayrak by knockout

Serhii Adamchuk defeated Alexei Ulianov via split decision

Ariel Machado beat Michael Duut via unanimous decision

Itay Gershon defeated Li Sanjin via unanimous decision

SUPER FIGHT SERIES

Antonio Plazibat defeated Jahfarr Wilnis via split decision

Donovan Wisse defeated Cesar Almeida by majority decision

Nordine Mahieddine defeated Cihad Kepenek via split decision

Ulric Bokeme defeated Kevin Van Heeckeren via unanimous decision

Rebekah Irwin defeated Yi Xu via split decision