Luis Tavares speaks on Saturday’s GLORY Rivals 1 headlining matchup and more
GLORY Rivals 1 is set to take place this Saturday at the Zwembad Hoornse Vaart in Alkmaar, Netherlands.
Headlining the event will be former multi-time Enfusion champion, Luis Tavares, and fellow multi-time champion, Florent Kaouachi.
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We sat down with Tavares today this morning to discuss his upcoming bout, his return to GLORY, and more.
Check out some snippets of the conversation:
What has life been like for Luis Tavares since your last bout?
“I didn’t know that it was nine months already, but training camp has been a little bit tougher than normal because I was supposed to fight for the world title in March. So we had a long, we had a long training camp. I was very well prepared, unfortunately, some things got in between, some politics you know, things that are happening in the world now. Then I was supposed to fight 21st of May, but that event got canceled too.
“So it’s been a long time but all the while I’ve been training, I’m in good spirits, just looking forward to entering the ring this Saturday and putting on a show.”
Why come back to GLORY?
“As you said earlier, I fought in GLORY in 2013 against Artem, it didn’t went my way. So my career took another journey, took another route. I’ve been fighting under other organizations in the meanwhile. Been winning fights, been winning titles, and then I got the invitation back for GLORY and GLORY is a big platform so why not. So that’s why I returned to GLORY, and to set it, to become champion, and to set a rematch right actually, a loss right.
What can we expect from you this Saturday?
“I’m anxious, so you can expect fireworks, you know. It’s been too long, like I said earlier, like almost nine months without a fight. I’ve been training my ass off for the title fight, a little bit of frustration has built up because of the cancelation of the prior fight. So this coming Saturday I get to finally enter the ring again, and yeah, and do what I love most.
“So I’m very excited, yeah, I would tell you to grab a popcorn, grab your drinks, and I’m ready to entertain you guys.”
What do you see in Kaouachi’s game that you might be able to take advantage of?
“Well first and foremost, he’s a, he’s a good fighter. I saw a lot of fights with him, I think he has a Muy Thai background, he likes to clinch a lot. So he’s a tall rangy fighter, he likes to use his kicks, but yeah, with the rangy fighters I see a lot of holes that I also saw with him. So I’m looking to exploit that this coming Saturday, yes. In my opinion, he has a little bit of a sloppy guard, so you can punch through his guard very easily. But on the other hand, yeah, I saw in his fights that when he gets punched, he always goes for the attack, so you have to keep that in mind also.
“But I’m fully prepared, yeah, I’m fully aware of my skills and I think, yeah, I’ll put on a show this Saturday.”
Have you considered transitioning into MMA?
“Actually, I did. I’ve been wrestling for the past two years. It all started because of the pandemic, so I started with some wrestling classes, some jiu-jitsu classes, and at first, I really didn’t think I would like the MMA game because I’m a kickboxer at heart. But after a few months, I really started to like it. So, yeah, it’s foreseeable in the future that I will do an MMA fight.
“But now, first and foremost, I have to focus on becoming GLORY world champion.
“Just sit back and enjoy man. I’m about to give you guys a very entertaining performance.”
Listen to the full interview below:
