As we predicted last week, former UFC heavyweight fighter Pat Barry has now signed for the Glory kickboxing promotion .
Barry announced that he was leaving the UFC and calling time on his mixed martial arts career last week, but hinted that he was interested in returning to his kickboxing roots and it seems he’s wasted little time in putting that plan into motion.
First things first, Barry will fight for the World Kickboxing Associaion on March 22nd against Ed Burris, but following that he’ll go on to fight at Glory’s next event in May which is rumored to be taking place in the U.S.
Glory are currently spearheading a resurgence in interest in the sport of kickboxing in the U.S thanks to a recent television deal with Spike TV that saw their last event, Glory 13: Tokyo draw 659,000 viewers, similar to the channel’s flagship MMA promotion Bellator.
Acquiring Barry’s services seems like a good move on their part, as the charismatic heavyweight is a fan favorite and will likely help draw new eyeballs to their upcoming show as a result.
The big question though is whether the 34 year-old can find renewed success inside the ring after a disappointing run in the UFC that saw him lose three of his last four fights.
‘HD’ does hold an 18-6-1 record in kickboxing, far superior to his 8-7 run as a mixed martial artist, but he hasn’t fought in the ring since 2007 and with a number of his losses in the Octagon coming by either KO or TKO there is a legitimate worry that his best days may be behind him.
A fresh start may be just what he needs though, and the fact that he’ll no longer have to worry about the ground game, which was always his biggest weakness in MMA, will no doubt be a big weight of his shoulders.
