GLORY has put #3 ranked Antonio Plazibat and #1 ranked Levi Rigters in a highly anticipated match, that is expected to bring fireworks. Both fighters are considered two of the best Heavyweight kickboxers on the planet. The event marks GLORY's long-awaited return to Zagreb, Croatia on the 21st of September. The winner of this fight will likely face GLORY Heavyweight World Champion Rico Verhoeven for the title later down the line.
Many expected GLORY to grant Antonio Plazibat a tune-up fight after a long layoff. The Croatian is returning after a year on the sidelines due to a broken arm he sustained during a bout against former title challenger and teammate Tariq 'Cookie' Osaro. Rigters is coming off a tough decision win over Cape Verdean heavyweight Nico Horta at GLORY 92 in Rotterdam.
COMING BACK FROM AN INJURY
Originally Antonio Plazibat was scheduled to face Rico Verhoeven for the GLORY Heavyweight belt at Collision 5 last year, but the fight fell through because Verhoeven sustained a severe knee injury during training. Plazibat wasn't looking to wait until Rico was recovered. As a result, GLORY hosted a contender tournament where the winner would face Plazibat for the GLORY Interim Heavyweight title. Osaro won the tournament as well as the interim belt, ending all fights by way of knockout. After earning himself the interim belt against Plazibat, Osaro then had his eyes on the title unification.
In a lackluster performance, the Nigerian fighter was no match for GLORY's Heavyweight king.
A year after his last fight, the now fully recovered Antonio Plazibat gets another opportunity to earn himself a shot at the title. But first, he needs to get past the talented Dutchman.
THE MAN WHO DROPPED RICO VERHOEVEN
'The Judge' had somewhat of a rough journey. After Rigters became a father of twin boys, he decided to step away from the ring for about a year to focus on his family. He was slated to make his comeback in 2023 at GLORY 89 in Bulgaria against fellow Dutchman Martin Terpstra, in what was officially a GLORY Grand Prix qualification bout. Terpstra had to pull out at the very last minute, because he sustained a back injury. GLORY found a replacement in Middleweight MMA fighter (!) Ion Taburceanu weighing in at 98 KG. Rigters made quick work of the Moldovan fighter.
He qualified for the Grand Prix, facing Uku Jürjendal in the quarter final. After getting dropped in the first round, he knocked out the Estonian heavyweight in the second round. In the semi-final, Rigters defeated GLORY's number 2 heavyweight and GLORY Light Heavyweight Grand Prix runner-up Bahram Rajabzadeh in a somewhat controversial unanimous decision. The stage was set for his dream final against ‘The King of Kickboxing’. After getting dropped by the champion, Rigters made the comeback of a lifetime by dropping Rico Verhoeven with a lightning fast spinning back fist. Unfortunately for ‘The Judge’, Verhoeven is tough as nails and came back strong dropping Rigters three times in a round to win the Grand Prix.
