Toronto – Fight Network, the world's premier 24/7 television channel dedicated to complete coverage of combat sports, will be airing a live broadcast of GLORY 6 Istanbulfrom Turkey this Saturday, April 6, at 1 p.m. ET.
GLORY 6 Istanbul will replay on Thursday, April 11, at 10 p.m. ET.
One day before a star-studded GLORY 6 Istanbul lineup, Fight Network will be presenting ONE FC 8: Kings & Champions live from Kallang, Singapore on April 5 at 7 a.m. ET.
Fight Network is just two weeks removed from a blockbuster GLORY 5 Londonkickboxing extravaganza from England, which saw Tyrone Spong record a punishing first-round knockout of well-travelled legend Remy Bonjasky.
In the main event of GLORY 6 Istanbul, heavyweight superstar rivals Gokhan Saki (79-16, 55 KOs) of the Netherlands and Daniel Ghita (46-8, 35 KOs) of Romania will collide for the second time in their careers.
Just over two years after their December 2010 fight, Saki and Ghita will reprise their roles as adversaries in a meeting that will have the attention of fight fans all over the world. Their first clash was an instant classic and this rematch has an added edge because a shot at the GLORY world heavyweight title is on the line for the winner.
"Daniel Ghita is ranked No. 2 in the world and Gokhan Saki is ranked No. 3, so this fight will determine which of them is to go on and become the top contender for the GLORY world heavyweight title currently held by world No. 1 Semmy Schilt," said Marcus Luer, Managing Director of GLORY Sports International. "Both of these fighters are absolutely at the peak of their games right now. You only have to look at their performances in the GLORY Heavyweight Grand Slam in Tokyo on New Year's Eve. Saki scored two lightning-quick KOs before exiting in the semifinal stage, and Ghita stopped two of his three opponents to earn a spot in the championship round of the event. The GLORY heavyweight championship is the most prestigious belt in kickboxing today and they want it badly – they just have to go through each other to get it."
Saki was raised in the Netherlands but is of Turkish heritage and is very proud of his roots. He is a big name in his ancestral land and will quickly find himself being mobbed for pictures and autographs if he wanders the streets of a big city.
Ghita, meanwhile, is entering the lion's den by agreeing to face Saki in the Turkish capital of Istanbul, but the former bodyguard to the Romanian president knows no fear.
Both fighters saw the New Year in with a bang via their performances in the Grand Slam. Saki demolished Japanese contender Raoumaru in the opening stage and then flattened top Brazilian heavyweight Anderson 'Braddock' Silva. He was scoring well against Schilt, but the judges had Schilt winning the first two rounds, and so Schilt advanced to the final under the 'Best of Three Rounds' tournament rule.
Ghita's New Year's Eve tournament run started with a surprisingly vicious challenge from young Jhonata Diniz of Curitiba, Brazil, who established himself as one to watch but was ultimately beaten by the Romanian. Ghita then faced Mourad Bouzidi and dislocated the Tunisian's shoulder with an uppercut before facing Moroccan prospect Jamal Ben Saddik and taking him out in 10 seconds with a liver kick.
In the evening's championship bout with Schilt, the fight was competitive until 11 seconds from the end of the first round when Ghita took a clean head-kick from the giant karateka and was dropped hard. He beat the count and wanted to continue but the referee declared the fight to be over, much to Ghita's dismay.
"I can't wait to fight at the Ulker Sports Arena in April," said Saki. "The atmosphere is going to be incredible and I am going to put on a big show for all the Turkish fans. I give credit to Ghita for agreeing to face me in Istanbul but it was a mistake. I'm looking for a big KO; Istanbul is my town."
Ghita remarked, "I don't expect to hear too many people cheering for me when I walk into the arena on April 6 and I think it will be even quieter when I win the fight. I respect Saki very much but I'm going to win this fight and I'm going to get the title shot."
The full fight card for GLORY 6 Istanbul live on Fight Network includes:
-Daniel Ghita vs. Gokhan Saki (HW)
-Fabiano Cyclone vs. Mourad Bouzidi (HW)
-Filip Verlinden vs. Unai Unzai (95 kg)
-Marc De Bonte vs. L'houcine Ouzgni (85 kg)
-Karim Ghajji vs. Nieky Holzken (77 kg)
-Alessandro Campanga vs. Andy Ristie (70 kg)
-Joseph Valtelini vs. Murat Direkci (77 kg)
-Roman Mailov vs. Ismail Uzuner (70 kg)
-Dong Su Kim vs. Naoki Yasuda (65 kg)
For a full listing of Fight Network's broadcast schedule, please visit tv.fightnetwork.com.
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