Who is Artem Vakhitov? Everything You Need to Know About Rico Verhoeven’s GLORY 100 Opponent
Rico Verhoeven’s opponent at the historic Glory 100 event has been revealed to be the former Glory kickboxing heavyweight world champion. Who exactly is this fighter, though? His name has been circulating the MMA and kickboxing spheres for years, but who is he in kickboxing and MMA? Today, we take a deep dive.
A forgotten Muay Thai talent
Artem Vakhitov is little known for his Muay Thai ability, but it’s where he got his start. He is a three-time world champion under the IFMA as an amateur and professional, a European champion as a light heavyweight, and a world champion as a heavyweight under the WMC or the World Muay Thai Council.
Move to kickboxing
After conquering the world of Muay Thai, Artem Vakhitov moved into kickboxing. He won the Glory Kickboxing light heavyweight world title back in 2016 and reigned for three years. He dominated the light heavyweight division of Glory. He made a serious name for himself as one of the greatest light heavyweights in the promotion’s history and the division’s history in general.
Artem Vakhitov’s rivalry with Alex Pereira.
In the twilight of his first run in Glory Kickboxing, Artem would have an incredible rivalry with the excellent Alex Pereira. In two incredibly entertaining and closely contested bouts, that would have fans contesting the decisions of both fights. Both fighters seemed to be made to be rival and for Alex Pereira. Artem Vakhitov to this day, has been the only fighter to go blow for blow with him on the feet. Something even the likes of UFC middleweight great Israel Adesanya couldn’t do.
Banned from Glory and MMA stint.
In 2022, Glory Kickboxing made the remarkably controversial move to terminate the contracts and ban all of its Russian athletes from the promotion in the wake of the Russia Ukraine war. Vakhitov was stripped of his title and cut from the promotion, leaving him with few options in kickboxing. He would opt to try MMA. Going on a 3 – 1 record in MMA that would culminate in an impressive win on Dana White’s contender series.
Return of the exiled king against the king of kickboxing
In February of 2025, Glory kickboxing would lift its ban on Russian Fighters and then go on to announce one of the biggest and most unexpected superfights. The exiled king Artem Vakhitov faces off against the heavyweight king and the face of Glory Kickboxing, the great Rico Verhoeven. This is a shocking match for the 100th event for the biggest promotion in kickboxing, especially with Glory getting the biggest international boost it has gotten yet with its DAZN deal. This is the most exciting kickboxing matchup this year, rivaling Takeru vs Rodtang.
