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Rico Verhoeven’s Toughest Fights: Badr Hari, Spinning Backfists, and Kickboxing Glory

Rico Verhoeven’s Toughest Fights: Badr Hari, Spinning Backfists, and the Path to Kickboxing Glory ‘The King of Kickboxing’ Rico Verhoeven names Badr Hari as his toughest fight but Levi Rigters is right behind….

‘The King of Kickboxing’ Rico Verhoeven names Badr Hari as his toughest fight but Levi Rigters is right behind. His journey to becoming a Glory champion has been marked by grueling battles that tested his resilience. As he prepares to defend his title against Rigters at Glory Collision 7, Verhoeven reflects on the toughest fights of his illustrious career, in an interview with Giovanni Tjin.

Rico Verhoeven’s Toughest Fights

1. Badr Hari

Rico Verhoeven has faced numerous elite fighters, but he ranks his bouts with Badr Hari at the top of his toughest challenges. Hari, a kickboxing legend, has exceptional fight IQ and incredible power. The Moroccan-Dutch athlete pushed Verhoeven to his limits. Their intense rivalry, Verhoeven’s durability, and his ability to adapt under pressure.

“Badr is dangerous in so many ways,” Verhoeven noted in a recent interview. “His ability to adapt during a fight makes him unpredictable. Those fights taught me a lot about staying focused and composed no matter what.”

2. Levi Rigters

Levi Rigters, Rico Verhoeven’s opponent for Saturday’s title fight, is another name on his list of challenging opponents. Their previous encounter earlier this year in Glory’s eight-man tournament showed Rigters’ skills. Rigters’ spinning back fist sent Verhoeven to the canvas—a rare sight for the reigning champion.

“I won that fight, but I made a big mistake,” Verhoeven admitted. “That back fist landed because I let my guard down. It was a humbling moment, but one I’ve learned from.” Despite the setback, Verhoeven rebounded, securing victory via knockout and taking home the $500,000 prize.

3. Jamal Ben Saddik and Tariq Osaro

In the heavyweight division, size and power often dominate, and Verhoeven has faced no shortage of physically imposing opponents. Among them are Jamal Ben Saddik and Tariq “Cookie” Osaro, whom Verhoeven places in the same category of challenges.

“They’re both large and incredibly strong,” Verhoeven explained. “You have to be tactical when facing guys like that. It’s not just about matching their strength but outsmarting them.”

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As he steps into the ring against Rigters once again, Rico Verhoeven aims to showcase the lessons learned from his storied career. The much-anticipated Glory Collision 7 title fight between Verhoeven and Rigters takes place on December 7 at the Gelredome. Fans eagerly await to see if Verhoeven’s introspection and preparation will cement his legacy or if Rigters will mark the dawn of a new era in kickboxing.

Exclusive | Champion Donegi Abena Calls Out Jake Paul “I would smash him.”

The Surinamese-Dutch kickboxing world champion Donegi Abena is looking to destroy celebrity boxer and YouTuber Jake Paul. The top-ranked…

The Surinamese-Dutch kickboxing world champion Donegi Abena is looking to destroy celebrity boxer and YouTuber Jake Paul. The top-ranked Abena has spent time training alongside Tommy Fury and sees the Mike Tyson fight as just plain silly.

Donegi Abena Calls Out Jake Paul

Donegi Abena is the number one ranked light heavyweight in the world in kickboxing after a stellar 2024. The 26-year-old faced three opponents in a single evening to capture the 2024 Glory Light Heavyweight Grand Prix title, stopping all three opponents by way of knockout.

This weekend, Abena takes on his career rival Tarik Khbabez with the light heavyweight division title on the line in their third meeting. The Surinamese-Dutch athlete is looking to make a statement with a decisive victory in the trilogy match against the Moroccan striker. The two are set to battle at Glory Collision 7 on December 7.

Abena has spent some time training his sharp hands with the Fury family and was a sparring partner for Tommy Fury, a former opponent of celebrity boxer Jake Paul. On a potential Jake Paul matchup, the kickboxing champion did not leave any doubt, in an interview with me, he said:

“I would smash him. I would smash him. And that’s the reason why he takes guys who are 60, or guys who aren’t used to only boxing … He’s a smart businessman. He’s making millions of dollars, and he’s fighting people with names. But they’re either old, or they’re from a different sport. Jake Paul, he’s fighting old guys and not boxers. If he wants it, he can get it as well.”

Jake Paul was a social media influencer who transitioned to a career in professional boxing but has taken criticism for not facing ranked fighters, instead opting for blockbuster matches. In his career, he’s defeated former UFC fighters such as Ben Askren, Nate Diaz, and Anderson Silva, among others. Most recently, Jake Paul had a heavyweight boxing match against 58-year-old Mike Tyson. According to betting lines, Tommy Fury may be a future opponent for ‘The Problem Child’ but for a bigger challenge the kickboxing king Donegi Abena is ready for a showdown.

Exclusive | Rico Verhoeven Wants Francis Ngannou to Decide “The Baddest Man on the Planet”

The long-reigning heavyweight king of kickboxing Rico Verhoeven wants a match against Francis Ngannou, the lineal UFC champion and…

The long-reigning heavyweight king of kickboxing Rico Verhoeven wants a match against Francis Ngannou, the lineal UFC champion and current PFL heavyweight titleholder. This would be a battle of combat sports superstars.

Rico Verhoeven vs. Francis Ngannou

The Dutch-born Rico Verhoeven has held the GLORY heavyweight kickboxing world title for a decade and has an incredible 11 title defenses to his name. Along the way, he’s defeated incredible fighters such as Badr Hari, Jamal Ben Saddik, and many others. Earlier this year he defeated three opponents in a single night to capture the Grand Prix title. Now, he will look to defend his throne at Glory Collision 7, on December 7, against Levi Rigters.

Cameroon’s Francis Ngannou entered the UFC and quickly made a name for himself due to his fearsome power. He captured the heavyweight crown with a series of knockout wins and defended his UFC before leaving the organization. He then took on blockbuster boxing matches against heavyweight boxing royalty before capturing the PFL MMA world title by first-round knockout.

Both Rico Verhoeven and Francis Ngannou have experience across multiple combat sports; each man has competed at the professional level across Kickboxing, MMA, and boxing. However, Ngannou has far more experience in MMA while Verhoeven has far more experience in kickboxing.

Rico Verhoeven discussed the match with me in an interview, he explained:

“I would love that. That would definitely make sense, especially if we’re talking about the baddest man on the planet. Absolutely. Yeah, I think we’re both in that conversation. MMA, boxing, and kickboxing—let’s throw everybody in one jar and put them all together. Let’s do it!”

Both the PFL and GLORY would likely be okay doing a crossover event, but picking the right regulations would be an issue. As for the rules and gloves, Verhoeven is ready for anything. He continued:

“Let’s see what they offer and what they have in mind. A boxing match would be nice. It would be interesting because we both come out of our own worlds and do something else. Of course, in MMA, he would have an advantage. In kickboxing, I would have the advantage. Let’s see.”

Interestingly, Ngannou and Verhoevern have actually trained together before. The Dutch striker said:

“The training we had was so light, it was just fun. I was in town, and we were just hanging out. I know Eric is his trainer, and he’s really good. We just had fun, showed him some stuff I use within kickboxing, and yeah, we just hung out.”

Francis Ngannou currently has no match scheduled in the near future. Rico Verhoeven is looking to cement his place as an all-time great in kickboxing with another defense of his title booked for December 7 at Glory Collision 7 facing the dangerous kicker Levi Rigters.

Rico Verhoeven I Would Love That. Baddest Man on the Planet On Facing Francis Ngannou YouTube 0 17 53

Will Francis Ngannou Face Rico Verhoeven?

PFL World Champion Francis Ngannou may have a future opponent in Rico Verhoeven, the kickboxing world title holder. Rumors…

PFL World Champion Francis Ngannou may have a future opponent in Rico Verhoeven, the kickboxing world title holder. Rumors and quotes have been circulating recently.

Francis Ngannou

Cameroon’s Francis Ngannou was the UFC heavyweight champion and was feared for his striking power, with an incredible 85% knockout win rate. Since walking away from the organization, he took on two blockbuster boxing fights against champions Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua. Afterward, he returned to MMA to capture the PFL heavyweight title with a first-round knockout.

Rico Verhoeven

The Dutch-born Rico Verhoeven captured the GLORY Kickboxing World title in 2014 and has not lost since, he now has compiled 11 title defenses plus a Grand Prix championship along the way. He is best known for his fights against Badr Hari. The kickboxer has a 32% knockout win rate and has largely cleared out the heavyweight division. His next bout is a rematch against Levi Rigters then hopefully he can face Antonio Plazibat, after that, there’s no one left in this division.

Francis Ngannou vs. Rico Verhoeven

When Francis Ngannou left the UFC, he was fielding offers from many organizations as the hottest free agent in combat sports. GLORY Kickboxing circulated a story stating that they had sent Ngannou an offer. In a conversation with me, Ngannou said that this story was simply false. In no uncertain terms, he said: “No, no. I never received an offer from GLORY.“

The Cameroonian athlete had a singular kickboxing win before he made his professional MMA debut. Reflecting on this match, Francis Ngannou told me: “Well, I remember it was a moment that I just wanted to fight. I was very excited, was very hungry, and was training all the time. I wanted to fight. My kickboxing wasn’t great though … But I was just like, I have the will to win. I was going there for everything. It was quite a good experience.”

Francis Ngannou PFL — Photo by Tim Wheaton

The kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven has a singular MMA victory from 2015. Verhoeven and Ngannou have each competed professionally across kickboxing, MMA, and boxing. The ruleset in a potential could be mixed following a long history of kickboxers vs. MMA fighters, such as we used to see K-1 vs. PRIDE events.. In conversation with the PFL though; they’re not looking to mix rules.

Speaking in an interview with Ariel Helwani, Verhoeven implored the public for this match. He said:

“What I would like to say to them is just, I think when we’re talking about ‘Baddest on the Planet’, and we’re talking about crossover fights, this must happen! It hasn’t happened because we’ve done the most crazy fights, and this is one of them that needs to be added to the list. So let’s make it happen!

“Let’s find out who it is…the crossover talks, they’ve been going on for quite some time. For example, what’s going on in [Saudi Arabia] is awesome. They’ve put mixed martial arts on the map in a different way…there’s so many different flavors. Could be a home-and-away fight, kickboxing or MMA fight, which likely ends up 1-1. But a boxing match, that’s interesting, because it’s a different way for both of us.”

Breaking: Rico Verhoeven’s Next Fight: Dec 7 against GLORY 95 Main Event Winner -Levi Rigters vs Bahram Rajabzadeh

Breaking news: Rico Verhoeven’s Next Fight is set to go down at GLORY Collision 7 booked for December 7,…

Breaking news: Rico Verhoeven’s Next Fight is set to go down at GLORY Collision 7 booked for December 7, he will face the winner of Levi Rigters vs Bahram Rajabzadeh. The GLORY 95 headlining fight will decide who the heavyweight king will next face with his GLORY title on the line. This news was recently announced by GLORY Kickboxing.

Rico Verhoeven’s Next Fight

‘The King of Kickboxing’ Rico Verhoeven has held his Glory heavyweight throne with an iron grip for a decade. Most recently, he won a one-night Grand Prix defeating three heavyweight strikers in one night. Throughout his career, he defeated many notable opponents but his biggest rival is the Dutch-Moroccan kickboxing legend Badr Hari.

During the single-night tournament, Verhoeven faced the towering Levi Rigters in the final, and the two traded knockdowns until ultimately Rigters could not get back to his feet and Verhoeven was declared the victor.

Levi Rigters vs Bahram Rajabzadeh

GLORY 95 on September 21 will see Levi Rigters vs Bahram Rajabzadeh in the main event. It is a rematch as these two met in the aforementioned GLORY heavyweight Grand Prix earlier this year. Rigters was able to score a knockdown to secure the victory but Rajabzadeh protested claiming he was not knocked down. Now, Rajabzadeh gets his chance to avenge this loss.

Bahram Rajabzadeh is celebrated for his aggressive forward style, he is always aiming for a knockout. Rajabzadeh is dangerous with all limbs including his flurry of punches, knees, and head kicks. In total throughout his entire career, he has a knockout win rate of 87%.

The towering Levi Rigters has mastered the distance low kicks and packs a ton of power when he throws. In GLORY’s heavyweight division, Rigters has been able to capture knockouts by way of leg attacks. He will look to earn a victory to secure a future title shot and be Rico Verhoeven’s Next Fight.

Levi Rigters vs Bahram Rajabzadeh goes down on September 21 at GLORY 95, the winner will then punch their ticket to meet the heavyweight king. Rico Verhoeven’s Next Fight will be at GLORY Collision 7 booked for December 7 from the Gelredome, in the Netherlands.

Watch: Mory Kromah Stuns with Vicious Knee Knockout in Debut

“The Black Ghost” Mory Kromah has announced himself to the GLORY light heavyweight division with a vicious knockout win…

“The Black Ghost” Mory Kromah has announced himself to the GLORY light heavyweight division with a vicious knockout win at GLORY 94. He stopped PFL fighter Mohamed Amine with a flying knee knockout.

Mory Kromah Knockout win at GLORY 94

The 25-year-old stunned audiences with his organizational debut in GLORY’s light heavyweight division. The weight class is stacked with talent and dangerous strikers. Mory Kromah will be a great addition to this exciting weight division.

After a consecutive eleven impressive wins in Enfusion, the Guinea-born athlete Mory Kromah signed his name to GLORY Kickboxing and now sets his sights on being the best in the world. The long-legged striker showed off his dangerous skills against the veteran of kickboxing and MMA Mo Amine.

With long kicks from range, “The Black Ghost” battered the body and legs of Amine. He knocked his opponent down and sent him doubling over in pain with kicks to the body. Up close, he delivers knees to his opponent to keep Amine back. The flying knee put Amine flat on his back and the PFL athlete was unable to recover from the onslaught.

Kromah is a highly skilled and exciting fighter who has a full range of kickboxing talent. See his knockout win at GLORY 94 below: