Rico Verhoeven will continue kickboxing for at least three years. The world heavyweight champion made the announcement at the Glory event in Rotterdam this evening.
“When I signed my previous contract, I thought it would be my last,” Verhoeven said. “But over the last few weeks I’ve had a strong feeling that I want to keep going longer. “I feel like I still have a lot of good matches ahead of me.”
“Fighting three times in one evening is something special.”
In March, Verhoeven will enter the kickboxing ring for the first time. He later participates in Glory’s new competition concept, the Grand Prix. Eight kickboxers battle for victory in an evening of the annual eight-man tournament.
Verhoeven is very excited about the new concept. “It’s pretty special for people to see me fight three times in one night,” he said. “It will be difficult. You will not escape unpunished.”
Verhoeven, who turns 35 in April, will become Glory’s undefeated champion for a decade next summer. He successfully defended his championship belt 11 times.
He last won a point against rival Tarik Osaro at the Gelredome Stadium last November. In this fight, Verhoeven returned from a serious knee injury.
“I’m still trying to show that I’m the best”
Wouldn’t it make sense if he ended his career after the summer? “It could have been done,” Verhoeven admitted. “But I still have the desire to show that I am the best in this sport. “I enjoy it very much, I feel like I am developing and getting better.”
Verhoeven has other passions besides kickboxing, such as acting. At the beginning of the year, the movie Black Lotus, in which he starred, was released. He wants to continue acting. “Glory gives me the space to pursue these other passions,” Verhoeven says.
Verhoeven has been the heavyweight world champion for almost a decade, but there are other kickboxers who can call themselves that. How exactly does this work? We made this sports narrative at the beginning of this year.
Source: NOS
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
