Stephen Wakeling

Four-time world champion Stephen Wakeling (36-4, 14 KO’s) of Kent, England will square off with fast-rising KO artist Eddie ‘Showtime’ Walker (11-2-1, 9 KOs) of Atlanta, Ga. in a middleweight (85 kilograms/187 pounds) contest at the star-studded GLORY 5 London kickboxing event at ExCel Arena in London, England on Saturday, March 23, Glory Sports International announced today.

The 29-year-old Wakeling, renowned for his excellent conditioning and tendency to inflict heavy punishment on opponents, has faced and defeated a host of top-ranked riva! l superstars, including Thailand’s famed world champion Jaowchalam Chatjanokgym  and Australian powerhouse ‘John’ Wayne Parr.  On July 7, 2012, Wakeling fought pound-for-pound sensation Artem Levin to a draw in a spectacular, five-round bout in England.

Wakeling comes from a high pedigree of fighting stock. His father Mark was a successful fighter in his own right and had a career which culminated with a fight in Thailand’s prestigious annual King’s Cup tournament in 1998. Wakeling’s brother, Mike, is a European champion.

Walker, experienced a career breakthrough last year when he scored a shocking, upset  KO of WBC interim Muay Thai championJoe ‘Stitch ‘Em Up’ Schilling after Schilling had put Walker down twice early in the fight in Las Vegas, Nev.

The come-from-behind victor! y earned Walker a spot in the ROAD TO GLORY USA inaugural, middleweight development series tournament in Los Angeles, Calif. on Feb. 9.  There, Walker finished as runner-up after scoring a second round (1:26) KO on Edgar Del Fierro and a second round (2:13) TKO on Van Wyk Povey in the quarterfinal and semifinal stages of the tournament, respectively.

Walker is known for possessing frightening power in both hands and, with 9 of his 11 professional wins by way of stoppage inside the distance, he has an incredible 81 percent finish rate. Walker trains under Manu N’toh, a renowned instructor who also counts UFC middleweight Brian Stann among his students, and posted a 7-0 amateur record before turning professional in 2010.

Tickets for GLORY 5 London can be purchased online at Ticketmaster.co.uk and by phone at the exclusive ticket hotline: 0844 847 2543.

In the highly-anticipated heavyweight main event, decorated,! all-time great Remy Bonjasky (77-15, 40 KO’s) of The Netherlands will take on ferocious, surging superstar Tyrone Spong (68-6-1 42 KO’s) of Boca Raton, Fla. via The Netherlands.

The full GLORY 5 London fight card is below:

- Tyrone Spong (Netherlands) vs. Remy Bonjasky (Netherlands)
- Andy Ristie (Suriname) vs. Albert Kraus (Netherlands)
- Stephane Susperregui (France) vs. Danyo Ilunga (Congo)
- Liam Harrison (UK) vs. Mo! sab Armani (Morocco)
- Jordan Watson (UK) vs. Steve Moxon (Australia)
- Raymond Daniels (USA) vs. TBA
- Jaideep Singh (UK/India) vs. Daniel Sam (UK)
- Stephen Wakeling (UK) vs. Eddie Walker (USA)
- Maxim Vorovski (Russia) vs. Duoli Chen (China)
- Johann Fauveau (France) vs. Warren Stevelmans (South Africa)
- Reece McAllister (UK) vs. Tim ! Thomas (UK)

Stay close to The MMA Review (themmareview.co.uk) for all the latest GLORY news.

Jay Cee – @JayCeeMMA

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*This is an official GLORY press release. A press release is an announcement of an event, performance, or other newsworthy item that is issued to the press.