Global Fighting Championship: The Middle East’s Biggest Kickboxing Showdown

The Global Fighting Championship, or GFC, was a strong presence in the combat sports world of the Middle East, hosting a series of adrenaline-charged events from 2014. GFC is known for attracting elite talent, and the lineup included powerful fighters, such as Moroccan-Dutch superstar Badr Hari and kickboxing icon Peter Aerts. Thrilling action from fighters into the ring characterized these fights as each showed unique skills and strategies in their fight for a top spot in the championship. Held in Dubai, such events attracted viewers from far and wide as the city further cements its status as a growing center for sports and entertainment.

Each GFC event consisted of a heavy-weight 4-Man Tournament where the prize was an AED 1 million. This tournament format also added a new excitement because the strongest contenders would advance through an extremely fast progression of high-stakes matches. Besides the tournament, GFC held seven “superfights” where international kickboxers and MMA fighters tested their skills in highly publicized bouts. The GFC events were building up toward eight planned fight series, a grand prix leading to an impressive $1 million prize, upping the stakes with every performance by each fighter.

Dubai World Trade Centre was the venue for the first GFC Fight Series in the combat sports scene for May 29, 2014, to be remembered. Badr Hari trashed Australian Peter Graham into submission during the last show of the series, thus emerging as the overall winner of the series. The event was highly publicized and presented with legendary announcer Michael Buffer and commentators like Michael Schiavello adding to the show. Dewey Cooper, Stefan Leko, and Erkan Varol were some other fighters who added excitement to the night.

The GFC Fight Series II happened on October 16, 2014, at Dubai Duty-Free Tennis Stadium with Ismael Lazaar defeating Sem Tevette in the final. Though marred by a couple of last-minute changes, for example, the injury that forced Melvin Manhoef out to pave the way for Tevette, this tournament was equal to an intense experience. Badr Hari was scheduled to fight Patrice Quarteron in an exhibition match, though after Quarteron had been removed from the contest owing to unsportsmanly behavior, Hari then fought Arnold Oborotov and knocked him out in the first round. This fight epitomized GFC’s commitment to offering the best fights, whereby they fought for whatever stumbled into their way.

April 2015 saw GFC return to the Dubai Duty-Free Tennis Stadium for its third fight series. This would feature the names Zabit Samedov and Danyo Ilunga but the most notable appearance, of course, was for Gökhan Saki as he would face off Sebastian Ciobanu for the main event. How much more GFC made its reputation grow with a spectacular fight night as superstars battled their way for a place in the grand prix.

Although GFC did exceptionally well, the fights still brought controversies to itself because of the hype regarding Badr Hari and Patrice Quarteron. Many fans got excited due to the social media taunts thrown at Hari by Quarteron, but Quarteron’s acts made him not compete with the other fighter scheduled, while Hari played it off, saying the theatrics didn’t matter; it was all about being ready in the ring.

The Global Fighting Championship left its mark in Dubai and the Middle East to attract many fans and fighters into the exciting realm in which only the best could be called victorious. Through the stages of high-stakes tournaments, international matchups, and all the dramatic rivalries of GFC, it did much more for Dubai than increase its presence in the world of fight sports, thus paving the way for upcoming MMA and kickboxing tournaments in the region.