After a string of painful defeats, Badr Hari is finally hoping to take his first GLORY win on Saturday. The 37-year-old kickboxing legend has been preparing in complete silence for his rematch with Arek Wrzosek in recent weeks.
Also on Friday afternoon, Hari failed to arrive on the official GLORY 80 scale. After the other fighters climbed onto the scales one by one and posed for a look, GLORY showed a pre-recorded video of Hari’s scales and Wrzosek.
How different it was in September last year when Hari put a lot of pressure on his Polish opponent. Wrzosek took his sporting revenge by taking out Hari a day later.
“After every fight you see where you lose your stitches,” Hari’s trainer Said El Badaoui tells NU.nl. “During this self-assessment, we decided to focus entirely on the challenge this time around. We will now put aside all environmental issues and disturb ourselves.”
This approach has also resulted in Hari not posting anything on social media in recent months, except for an Instagram post where he wrote that Wrzosek’s victory was comparable in luck to winning the lottery. Hari was absent to support the fight at a press conference hosted by GLORY a few weeks ago.
Even the day before the fight, Hari refused to speak to the press. El Badaoui instead considered another duel with Wrzosek. “The whole training camp went as planned. Badr is very focused and prepared for anything. I think it’s even sharper than last time.”
“Bedir likes to train, I see that his flame is still burning”
The former K-1 and It’s Showtime champion has lost four fights since signing with GLORY in 2016 and was doped in the only match he won. Suggestions from fans and the press that Hari should step down because he is in charge were rejected by the heavyweights. Hari recently signed a new multi-year contract with GLORY.
“You know, people can say whatever they want,” says El Badaoui. “I see that Bedir likes to train every day and that’s the most important thing for me.”
The Utrecht coach: “I train 25 professionals and some just don’t have the real motivation to go all out at a certain age. They are still standing if they can go on for years to come,” he explains. “I still see this flame burning in Badr. You should never underestimate exceptionally talented people like him. And at 37, not yet, Brazilian Glover Teixeira became champion a few months ago at the age of 42. †
The championship in GLORY remains Hari’s goal, the Moroccan from Amsterdam already said. “Badr has been through a lot, both in his career and in his private life, he has had to go through a lot,” says El Badaoui. “He could have stopped easily, but he is working hard to go for the title again. I think he’s ready.”
The match between Hari and Wrzosek will be played on Saturday evening between 9 pm and 11 pm in Hasselt, Belgium.
Source: NU
Jason Jack is an experienced technology journalist and author at The Nation View. With a background in computer science and engineering, he has a deep understanding of the latest technology trends and developments. He writes about a wide range of technology topics, including artificial intelligence, machine learning, software development, and cybersecurity.