By FCF Staff

Last October, it looked like Artem Vakhitov had taken a step towards possibly facing Alex Pereira once again, but this time in the Octagon. But, now the renowned kickboxer is reporting he’s turned down an offer from the UFC in favor of facing Rico Verhoeven under the GLORY banner.

Vakhitov, who defeated Pereira via majority decision in what was “Poatan’s” final kickboxing bout, recorded a quick stoppage win in a Dana White Contender Series bout in October. Dana White announced afterward he was giving Vakhitov a UFC contract. The UFC CEO also claimed Pereira had endorsed Vakhitov.

But, while speaking to MMA Fighting recently, Vakhitov revealed that the contract he was offered was a standard deal that all eligible DWCS winners are offered.

“Obviously I was delighted to win my fight on DWCS and get offered a contract. It was cool that Alex was there, also. It felt like the trilogy fight was very close, just a win or two away. Unfortunately, when it came time to finalize the UFC contract, it became clear that the UFC has strict policies for fighters coming through DWCS.

“Under their protocols, they were only able to offer me the standard contract given to all DWCS signings. My team tried to negotiate, but the UFC’s rules left no room for adjustments. I want to be clear that I don’t take issue with their approach—I respect their structure. But I am a prizefighter, and I have a family to support. I have a limited window to make the most of my career.”

The Russian fighter has since agreed to fight GLORY’s heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven at the kickboxing promotion’s 100th event on June 14th.

Vakhitov’s manager, Andrey Busygin, also told MMA Fighting they were hoping the UFC would offer them the same deal Pereira was given when he moved from GLORY to the UFC. Vakhitov has won GLORY’s light-heavyweight title twice and has long been regarded as one of the best kickboxers in the world.

“Artem Vakhitov and Alex Pereira had one of the closest rivalries in GLORY, and when the UFC opportunity arose, they both had identical 3-1 records in MMA. Given that, we felt it was reasonable to request that Artem receive the same kind of deal Alex got when he joined the UFC. Seems only fair, we thought.“

Vakhitov (23-6) also faced Pereira under the GLORY banner in 2021 and lost via split decision.

GLORY 100 will take place in Rotterdam, Netherlands.