Who better to know how to beat a former GLORY Kickboxing star than two current ones?
Ciryl Gane has enlisted the help of multiple GLORY standouts in preparation of his UFC Freedom 250 interim heavyweight title battle vs. Alex Pereira on June 14 at the White House in Washington.
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GLORY heavyweight champion Mory Kromah and two-time light heavyweight champion Artem Vakhitov were brought in by Gane (13-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) to refine his standup abilities and give him looks similar to Pereira (13-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC).
Netherlands’ Kromah (37-3-1) is the current GLORY heavyweight titleholder at nearly 6-foot-5 and 229 pounds. He has 22 career knockouts and is set to return June 13 at GLORY Collision 9 in Rotterdam, Netherlands.
Russia’s Vakhitov (23-7) has two career fights against Pereira in kickboxing with one win going to each man. He has held the GLORY light heavyweight title on two occasions, the first of which included five title defenses. He briefly embarked on a pro MMA career of his own, going 3-1 and earning a UFC contract on Dana White’s Contender Series. However, Vakhitov was unhappy with the promotion’s entry-level offer and decided to decline the UFC offer.
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Prior to turning pro, Vakhtiov was a decorated muay Thai amateur, winning various international tournaments.
“He’s a huge fighter,” Gane said in an interview with MMA Junkie when asked about Vakhitov. “He likes to make pressure and I like to make pressure also. Technically, he has some skills – some huge skills. To have some advice from a guy who fought Pereira, it was educational to have this kind of advice.”
It remains to be seen how heavy of a striking game plan Gane tries to implement when it comes time to fight Pereira, as he’s also teased a grapple-heavy approach. June 14, the world will find out.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Ciryl Gane enlists multiple GLORY stars to prepare for UFC Freedom 250