Glory 51: Hari vs. Gerges 2 - March 3 (Official Discussion)

Glory 51
March 3, 2018
Ahoy Rotterdam
Rotterdam, Netherlands

Main Card:
Badr Hari (106-13)                        vs.       (50-19) Hesdy Gerges  
Main Event | Heavyweight | 265 lbs (120 kg)
Tomas Mozny (17-5)                      vs.          (14-6) Daniel Skvor 
Co-Main Event | Heavyweight | 265 lbs (120 kg)
Eyevan Danenberg (26-6)               vs.       (58-13) Jimmy Vienot  
Main Card | Contender Tournament Semi-Finals | Welterweight | 170 lbs (77 kg)
Thongchai Sitsongpeenong (135-34) vs.    (49-15) Alan Scheinson 
Main Card | Contender Tournament Semi-Finals | Welterweight | 170 lbs (77 kg)

Superfight Series:
Cedric Doumbe (68-5)                      vs.          (48-6) Alim Nabiev  
Superfight Series | Welterweight | 170 lbs (77 kg)

The high-profile rematch between renowned Moroccan-Dutch heavyweight Badr “The Golden Boy” Hari (106-13, 92 KO, fighting out of the Netherlands) and rival Hesdy “Fighterheart” Gerges (50-19-1, 23 KO, fighting out of the Netherlands) headlines GLORY 51 Rotterdam.
 
The heavyweight competitors have history dating back to 2010, when tensions ran high around a memorable first meeting promoted under the It’s Showtime banner. During the second round, Hari knocked Gerges down and kicked him while still grounded, leading to Hari’s disqualification and Gerges being named It’s Showtime heavyweight champion. The unexpected result shocked the Dutch crowd and has given way to a rematch over seven years in the making.
 
Over the course of his illustrious 17-year kickboxing tenure, Hari captured K-1 and It’s Showtime heavyweight titles and produced a career highlight reel featuring 92 knockouts against the likes of Peter Aerts, Semmy Schilt, Gokhan Saki, Alistair Overeem, Stefan Leko, Peter Graham and Ray Sefo.
 
Gerges began training at 15 years old and took quickly to the sport. After turning pro in 2003, the Egyptian-Dutch slugger never looked back, squaring off against the heavyweight division’s best including Rico Verhoeven, Semmy Schilt, Daniel Ghita, Jamal Ben Saddik, Benjamin Adegbuyi, Ismael Londt and Anderson Silva.

GLORY 51 Rotterdam will also feature a one-night, four-man welterweight contender tournament loaded with top-10 talent.

In the first of two semifinal match-ups, "The Thai Terminator" Thongchai Sitsongpeenong (136-35, 46 KO, fighting out of Thailand), the highest ranked welterweight in the tournament at No. 8, takes on the experienced veteran Alan "Superboy" Scheinson (49-5, 37 KO, fighting out of Argentina), ranked No. 10.

On the other side of the tournament bracket, Aruba's Eyevan "Mister Cool" Danenberg(26-6, 13 KO, fighting out of the Netherlands), ranked No. 9, meets 22-year-old Muay Thai prospect Jimmy Vienot (58-13, 33 KO, fighting out of France).

Ahead of GLORY 51 Rotterdam, top-ranked welterweights will square off at GLORY 51 SuperFight Series in order to determine the division's next title challenger. Former world champion and current No. 1-ranked welterweight Cédric "The Best" Doumbé (68-5-1, 39 KO, fighting out of France) faces a dangerous up-and-comer in 23-year-old Alim "Professor" Nabiyev (48-6, 21 KO, fighting out of Russia), who closed 2017 at No. 4 in the division.

After dropping his title to rival Murthel Groenhart, Doumbé got back on the winning track against Yohan Lidon at GLORY 47 Lyon in October. Hailing from Azerbaijan, Nabiyev most recently secured the biggest win of his young career, defeating former welterweight champion Nieky Holzken at GLORY 49 SuperFight Series in December.