GLORY 3 Rome 'FINAL 8' - Results
Date published: November 04, 2012
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Rome, Italy (3 Nov. 2012) - Before a roaring crowd of his countrymen, ‘The Doctor’ Giorgio Petrosyan made a clean sweep through three opponents to underline why he is regarded as the world’s number one kickboxer.
Petrosyan scooped a grand prize of $300,000 after defeating Ky Hollenbeck of the USA, Davit Kiria of Georgia and Robin Van Roosmalen of the Netherlands in three consecutive fights. While doing so, he demonstrated the inhuman reflexes and timing that have proven impossible for his fellow fighters to deal with.
“Petrosyan is an artist. This is not just fighting, it is more than that,” GLORY chairman Pierre Andurand told the post-fight press conference after presenting Petrosyan with the winner’s cheque. “He is a once in a lifetime talent, it is incredible to watch, and I would like to congratulate him on being the first winner of a GLORY tournament. It is a pleasure to watch him fight.”
Andurand’s comments were echoed by Marcus Luer, Managing Director of GLORY, who likened Petrosyan to Italian masters of bygone days. “Italy has a history of producing master artists. Petrosyan is to his art what Leonardo Da Vinci was to his. He really is that special and that unique. His performances are beautiful to witness, they really do transcend the sport.”
Despite having won three fights in a row and taken a life-changing amount of money as a grand prize just moments before, Petrosyan was his usual humble self when asked to comment on his victory.
“I was confident that if I went out there and did my best that I would win the tournament and I did,” he said. “But they were all very strong fighters and they are champions too. I am very proud that this tournament was in Rome and that I could fight in front of an Italian crowd. Their support was very nice and I would like to thank everyone who came to the arena to support me.”
Petrosyan’s first fight of the evening saw him overwhelm and outfox the US hopeful Hollenbeck, who suffered a ligament tear in his right knee when clashing shins and had to quit the fight. Kiria was next and gave Petrosyan one of the hardest fights of his whole career, thanks in no small part to his karate-based style.
The final fight of the evening saw Petrosyan face the stocky knockout artist Van Roosmalen in what was a real clash of styles. Van Roosmalen throws every shot with heavy power and likes to give a lot of forward pressure. Previously that evening he had stopped Tim ‘TNT’ Thomas and Sanny Dahlbeck to book his spot in the final.
But it was Petrosyan that would emerge the victor. The small adjustments in distance and angle he made every time Van Roosmalen came forward left the Dutchman often swinging into empty air. Petrosyan’s positioning for two of the three rounds was immaculate and while the pace began to tell on him in the third round, he was the clear winner of the fight when the final bell sounded.
With the inaugural lightweight grand prix out of the way, GLORY now turns its attention to December’s Heavyweight Grand Slam event. It will take place in Tokyo and will see 16 top heavyweights fight it out in a one-night mega-tournament for a grand prize of $400,000.
Main Card
FINAL 8 Lightweight Tournament
70kg Final: Giorgio Petrosyan def. Robin van Roosmalen by decision
70kg Semi Final: Robin van Roosmalen def. Sanny Dahlbeck by TKO (Bodyshot) R3
70kg Semi Final: Giorgio Petrosyan def. Davit Kiria by decision
70kg Quarter Final: Sanny Dahlbeck def. Yoshihiro Sato by TKO in Round 2
70kg Quarter Final: Robin van Roosmalen def. Tim Thomas by TKO (Ref Stoppage) in Round 2
70kg Quarter Final: Davit Kiria def. Shemsi Beqiri by decision
70kg Quarter Final: Giorgio Petrosyan def. Ky Hollenbeck by TKO (Injury) in Round 2
70kg Reserve Fight: Alessandro Campagna def. Fabio Pinca by decision
70kg Reserve Fight: Warren Stevelmans def. Dzhabar Askerov by decision
Superfights:
70kg: Jordan Watson def. Mustapha Haida by decision
72.5kg: Alka Matewa def. Marco Re by decision
Preliminary Card: