Benjamin Adegbuyi
Benjamin Adekunle Miron Adegbuyi (born January 24, 1985) is a Romanian kickboxer and professional boxer. He is a two-time Glory Heavyweight Championship challenger and three-time winner of heavyweight tournament. Adegbuyi is also Superkombat World Grand Prix III 2012 tournament winner and 2018 Glory Heavyweight Grand Prix tournament runner-up. A professional since 2011, he also fought in K-1.
| Benjamin Adegbuyi | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Benjamin Adekunle Miron Adegbuyi January 24, 1985 Cluj-Napoca, Romania |
| Other names | Mister Gentleman Hammer (former) |
| Nationality | Romanian |
| Height | 6 ft 6 in (198 cm) |
| Weight | 258 lb (117 kg; 18.4 st) |
| Division | Heavyweight |
| Reach | 77.5 in (197 cm) |
| Fighting out of | Bucharest, Romania |
| Team | Superpro Sportcenter[1] |
| Trainer | Dennis Krauweel[1] Nutrition Coach: Cristian Mărgărit |
| Years active | 2011–present |
| Kickboxing record | |
| Total | 40 |
| Wins | 34 |
| By knockout | 19 |
| Losses | 6 |
| By knockout | 4 |
| Draws | 0 |
last updated on: December 8, 2018 | |
As of 1 August 2020, he is ranked the #3 heavyweight in the world by Glory.[2]
Biography
Adegbuyi was born in Cluj-Napoca, Romania to a Romanian mother and Nigerian father. Since the age of eight, he spent his childhood together with his mother and newborn sister in Aiud, Transylvania.[3]
As a child, he competed in sports like shotokan karate, boxing and basketball. He is currently training at Superpro Sportcenter in Zevenbergen, Netherlands. Previously he trained under Alin Panaite at Respect Gym in the Romanian capital Bucharest.[4]
Benjamin claims Yoruba as his father's roots who is currently the dean of a polytechnic university in Nigeria.[5]
Career
Adegbuyi made his kickboxing debut as a professional on March 18, 2011.
K-1 debut
He signed with K-1 in August 2012.[6][7]
Adegbuyi faced Jafar Ahmadi in a non-tournament bout at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2012 in Tokyo Final 16 on October 14.[8][9] Adegbuyi won via TKO early in the first round after Ahmadi seemingly broke his left hand.[10]
SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix 2012
After winning the title of the SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix III 2012 tournament (in which he defeated the highly rated and experienced Croat Mladen Brestovac), he was scheduled to fight Alexey Ignashov in the tournament on November 10 in Craiova, Romania at the SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix 2012 Final Elimination.[11][12] However, Ignashov could not fight due to injury and was replaced by the previous year's SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix Champion, Sergei Lascenko.[13] Adegbuyi battered Lascenko, flooring him twice in the first round before the referee called a halt to the bout.[14]
Despite entering as the tournament favourite, Adegbuyi was exposed by eventual champion Pavel Zhuravlev when the Ukrainian KOed him in first round in the semi-finals at the SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix 2012 Final on December 22 in Bucharest.[15][16][17]
2013 season: run
He defeated Mohamed Belazaar via first-round TKO due to an injury a SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix I 2013 in Oradea, Romania on April 6.[18][19]
He rematched Jairzinho Rozenstruik at SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix II 2013 in Craiova, Romania on May 18, and won by unanimous decision.[20][21][22]
He beat Ismael Londt by unanimous decision at Slamm!! Soema Na Basi IV in Paramaribo, Suriname on August 8, 2013.[23][24]
He defeat Reamon Welboren by unanimous decision at SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix III 2013 in Botoșani, Romania on September 28.[25][26]
Adegbuyi vs. Zhuravlev II
He rematched Pavel Zhuravlev at the SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix 2013 Final in Galați, Romania on December 21, 2013, winning by third-round KO.[27]
GLORY World Series
Adegbuyi prompted GLORY to pick him up and give him a shot on the best stage, after tearing it up on SUPERKOMBAT.
He was scheduled to face Jamal Ben Saddik at Glory 14: Zagreb in Zagreb, Croatia on March 8, 2014.[28] However, Ben Saddik broke his hand while training and was replaced by Dmytro Bezus.[29] Prior to the fight, Adegbuyi and Andrei Stoica spent time as sparring partners of Alexander Gustafsson at the Allstars Training Center in Stockholm, Sweden.[30] Adegbuyi knocked down Bezus three times winning by second-round TKO.[31][32][33]
He scored a second-round KO over Daniel Sam at Glory 16: Denver in Broomfield, Colorado, United States on May 3, 2014.[34][35]
In September, Adegbuyi was voted runner-up "Best New Talent" in the official GLORY Half-Year Awards.[36]
Adegbuyi beat Hesdy Gerges in November at Glory 18: Oklahoma on Spike, and became the mandatory challenger for a shot at the heavyweight title.[37][38]
He faced Daniel Lentie on 7 March 2015 at SUPERKOMBAT World Grand Prix I 2015. Adegbuyi dominated his opponent, winning via unanimous decision.[39]
GLORY Heavyweight Title Shot
Adegbuyi faced GLORY Heavyweight Champion Rico Verhoeven at Glory 22: Lille on June 5, 2015. At the event, Adegbuyi was defeated by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 50-45). Verhoeven showed his superior technique after a difficult first round and was hardly bothered by Adegbuyi.
Adegbuyi shocked the fans in France during the first round, dominating the champion with excellent power punches and a great jab. He showed no fear whatsoever for Verhoeven and used his advantage in reach to perfection, even rocking the Dutchman with one good shot. Verhoeven countered with great kicks in the second round, forcing Adegbuyi to move more and negate the jab. Adegbuyi missed several big shots, and his punching rate dropped considerably. Adegbuyi tired quickly in the third, as Verhoeven started finding his range and speeding up. His corner urged him on to keep moving, taking advantage of Adegbuyi's relative inexperience and evening's tendency to rely on his boxing too much.[40]
He fought mixed martial artist Alexandr Soldatkin at Tatneft Cup 2015 Final on September 4, 2015. Adegbuyi defeated Soldatkin in the third round via TKO.[41]
2015 GLORY Heavyweight Contender Tournament winner
On October 9, 2015, Benjamin Adegbuyi defeated Jahfarr Wilnis by split decision and Mladen Brestovac by TKO to earn the Ramon Dekkers memorial trophy and get a second crack at GLORY heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven.[42]
In the semifinal, Adegbuyi chopped down Mladen Brestovac using a relentless leg-kick attack on him to take his bout. Adegbuyi landed 65 leg kicks and systematically wore down his opponent before stopping him in the third round. A hard whacking kick to Brestovac's left thigh sent him to the canvas. Brestovac tried to rise to his feet, but he wasn't there long. Adegbuyi relentlessly attacked Brestovac's injured lower half until his opponent took a knee and gave up the fight. Undercard Superstar complimented Brestovac's effort but acknowledged Adegbuyi's skill level and physical prowess.
In one of the best heavyweight kickboxing bouts of 2015, Adegbuyi pulled out a split-decision victory over Jahfarr Wilnis to claim the tournament finals championship. In the first round, Adegbuyi looked to do some great work with leg kicks, but Wilnis' combination punches were a factor as well. The ebb and flow was gone in the second round. It looked to be all Wilnis. He had more energy and his level of activity seemed to shut Adegbuyi down. Just when it seemed as if Wilnis would run away with the final round, Adegbuyi began to find a home for his straight right hand. The punch repeatedly slowed Wilnis down and apparently did enough to convince two judges that Adegbuyi deserved the third and decisive round, winning the heavyweight brawl in an impressive fight.
Adegbuyi vs. Verhoeven II
Adegbuyi lost by first-round KO in a rematch with Rico Verhoeven for the heavyweight title in the main event of Glory 26: Amsterdam on December 4, 2015.
Controversial loss against Guto Inocente
He lost a shocking split-decision to Guto Inocente in the main event of Glory 43: New York, after appearing to dominate two of the three rounds they had fought. The result was met with boos from the crowd when it was announced and Adegbuyi looked nonplussed. Having visibly rocked Inocente in the first and third rounds, he had been certain the decision was going his way. Unexpectedly, the judges saw the fight very differently from the majority of viewers, leaving Adegbuyi speechless at the official announcement and venting fury on Twitter shortly afterwards.[43][44]
Fighting style
He has power, fluidity and natural athleticism. It is generally agreed that he needs more experience. In the last fights he demonstrated the ability to explore a more diverse range of techniques, from vicious body-shots to devastating low kicks.
Awards, records, and honors
- Glory
- 2018 Fight of the Year vs. Jahfarr Wilnis at Glory 62: Rotterdam[45]
- 2018 Glory Heavyweight Grand Prix (+95 kg/209.4 lb) Runner-up
- 2018 Glory Heavyweight (+95 kg/209.4 lb) Contender Tournament Winner
- 2016 Glory Heavyweight (+95 kg/209.4 lb) Contender Tournament Winner
- 2015 Glory Heavyweight (+95 kg/209.4 lb) Contender Tournament Winner
- 2014 Best New Talent Runner-Up
- SUPERKOMBAT Fighting Championship
- Combat Press
Professional boxing record
| 4 fights | 4 wins | 0 losses |
| By knockout | 3 | 0 |
| By decision | 1 | 0 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Win | 4–0 |  |
UD | 4 | 6 Jun 2019 |  |
|
| 3 | Win | 3–0 |  |
KO | 1 (4), 0:57 | 5 Jul 2018 | |
|
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | |
KO | 1 (4), 2:53 | 16 Mar 2018 |  |
|
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | |
TKO | 1 (4), 2:48 | 11 Nov 2017 | |
|
Kickboxing record
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34 wins (19 (T) KO's), 6 losses (4 (T) KO's), 0 draws
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Personal life
He became a father in 2015 when his son Patrick was born.
Acting
Adegbuyi appeared playing the role of a fighter in action-oriented underground fighting film Forced to Fight (2011), starring Gary Daniels and Peter Weller.[50]
See also
References
- "KICKEND EN BOKSEND NAAR DE TOP" (in Dutch). nieuwsredactie.fhj.nl. 15 September 2016.
- "ALL HEAVYWEIGHTS". glorykickboxing.com.
- "INTERVIU. Destăinuirile lui Benjamin Adegbuyi, "Ciocanul gentilom" din Superkombat" (in Romanian). Puterea. 9 June 2013.
- "FSA Talks to SUPERKOMBAT Star Benjamin Adegbuyi: "I Can Fight Anybody on Any Promotion"". Archived from the original on 2019-02-18. Retrieved 2013-05-29.
- ""Mă trag dintr-un trib de luptători!" Benjamin Adegbuyi, cea mai mare speranţă a românilor la Gala SuperKombat" (in Romanian). Prosport. 15 December 2012.
- Dave Walsh. "Benjamin Adegbuyi And Catalin Morosanu Join Raul Catinas As 3 Romanians At K-1 Final 16". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "K-1 Press Conference Photos, Quotes". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "K-1 Final 16 Matches Unveiled". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "K-1 WGP Final 16, Finalized Fight Card For This Sunday, October 14". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "K-1 World Grand Prix Final 16 Live Results". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "SuperKombat Final Elimination, November 10: Fight Card". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Fights To Watch In November: Part 2". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Sergei Lascenko Replaces Alexey Ignashov At SuperKombat Final Elimination Today". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Superkombat Final Elimination: Live Results". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Superkombat Final Elimination Review and Finals Preview". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "SuperKombat WGP Final, December 22 In Bucharest". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "SuperKombat WGP 2012 Final Live Results, Watch Here". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "SuperKombat WGP Fight Card, April 6". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "SUPERKOMBAT 2013 WGP Live Updates". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Full Fight Card For This Week's Super Kombat WGP in Craiova". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "SuperKombat WGP Craiova Results". liverkick.com.
- "SUPERKOMBAT World GP Craiova Results: Morosanu, Ciobanu Win at Home". Archived from the original on 2013-06-08. Retrieved 2013-05-20.
- SLAMM!! – Soema na Basi IV: Ismael Londt vs. Benjamin Adegbuyi Archived August 18, 2013, at the Wayback Machine
- Dave Walsh. "Benjamin Adegbuyi Defeats Ismael Londt at Slamm IV". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Final Card for SUPERKOMBAT WGP in Botsani". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Weekend Results: D'Angelo Marshall Wins Big at SUPERKOMBAT". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "SuperKombat World Grand Prix Final Results". liverkick.com.
- Dave Walsh. "Benjamin Adegbuyi vs. Jamal Ben Saddik Set for GLORY 14". liverkick.com.
- "FightSite - Ben Saddik zbog ozljede otkazao nastup u Zagrebu, umjesto njega dolazi Ukrajinac Bezus". www.fightsite.hr.
- "Alexander Gustafssons reportage från ABC". kimura.se.
- Michael Stets. "GLORY 14 results, live fight coverage stream for 'Cro Cop vs Bonjasky' Zagreb event on Spike TV". MMAmania.com.
- "Remy Bonjasky Walks Away With Controversial Decision Over 'Cro Cop' at Glory 14". Sherdog.
- "Glory 14 Results and Recap - Muay Thai Authority". muaythaiauthority.com. Archived from the original on 2015-03-20.
- "UFC Veteran Pat Barry Suffers First-Round Knockout Loss to Zack Mwekassa at Glory 16". Sherdog.
- "Glory 16 Results - Muay Thai Authority". muaythaiauthority.com. Archived from the original on 2015-03-20.
- "News - Niclas Larsen voted Best Newcomer". gloryworldseries.com.
- "Kickboxing: Glory 18 'Return to Glory' Results and Updates". Sherdog.
- "MATCHMAKER'S NOTES: GLORY SUPERFIGHT SERIES 18". GLORY. 3 November 2014.
- Jay Jauncey. "SuperKombat Romania Live Results and Stream". Liver Kick. Archived from the original on 2015-09-06. Retrieved 2015-10-28.
- Luke Thomas (2015-06-05). "GLORY 22 results: Rico Verhoeven batters Benjamin Adegbuyi to retain heavyweight title". mmafighting.com.
- Dave Walsh (2015-09-05). "Benjamin Adegbuyi Scores Last-Second Knockout at Tatneft Cup". liverkick.com. Archived from the original on 2015-11-18. Retrieved 2015-10-28.
- "Kickboxing: Joe Schilling Stops Jason Wilnis at Glory 24; Adegbuyi Wins Heavyweight Tourney". Sherdog. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
- "Inocente takes controversial decision win over Adegbuyi". glorykickboxing.com. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
- "GLORY 43 New York roundup and results: Adegbuyi 'badly robbed', Jauncey TKO'd and Vannostrand triumph". k1anoop.tv. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
- "O dispută a lui Benny Adegbuyi a fost declarat MECIUL ANULUI 2018". Gazeta Sporturilor (in Romanian). 14 January 2019.
- "Superlatives of Superkombat 2014". SUPERKOMBAT Fighting Championship. Archived from the original on 2015-02-27.
- "Castigatorii premiilor SUPERKOMBAT WGP 2011" (in Romanian). Gladiatorium. 4 December 2011. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015.
- http://combatpress.com/2017/03/combat-press-2016-kickboxing-awards-fighter-of-the-year-cedric-doumbe/
- http://combatpress.com/2017/02/combat-press-2016-kickboxing-awards-comeback-fighter-of-the-year-ionut-iftimoaie/
- "Forced to Fight (2011)". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved 28 January 2014.
External links
[[Category:Romanian expatriates in the Netherlands