Robin van Roosmalen says he’d agree to fight Giorgio Petrosyan right now

Robin van Roosmalen has set his sights on kickboxing icon Giorgio Petrosyan following his controversial victory over Sittichai Sitsongpeenong at GLORY 25 MILAN. Van Roosmalen took a decision win over Sitsongpeenong in the main event of GLORY 25 to keep hold of his lightweight title.

After his win the Dutchman sounded angry at the fact that people still doubt his abilities despite his success.

“I think I have a lot to prove, because I am still the underdog. Every time, people doubt me,” he said, shrugging and sounding more than a little sad. “I think I did it a couple of years ago but people keep doubting me, I don’t know why. 

“Yeah it pisses me off, really. Every time I beat the guys, I am still the underdog. Against Ristie [at GLORY 20] I was the underdog, against Kiria they were saying I couldn’t fight under pressure, against Sittichai they were saying he was going to knock me out… I won them all. What more do I have to say?”

One way that van Roosmalen (35-6, 19 KOs) could silence his critics is by taking a fight against Petrosyan in the coming months, something he’s all for.

“Everybody they want me to beat, I will beat, no problem. If they want to me fight Giorgio [Petrosyan] next, I will fight Giorgio. If they want me to fight some Top 20 guy it makes no difference, I will still be the underdog.”

Petrosyan defeated Josh Jauncey in the fight preceding van Roosmalen’s in Milan, marking a successful return to GLORY for the Italian-Armenian legend.

“I didn’t see his fight with Jauncey because I was preparing for my own fight. But I would say yes to that fight, right now,” he says.

“I have a lot of respect for Giorgio, he is a great fighter, but he is the only loss I didn’t get revenge for. I got revenge for my loss to Ristie, there is only Giorgio left.”

It’s an interesting decision for GLORY to find the right follow up for the lightweight champion. A title defense against Petrosyan would certainly be a big ticket tilt, one that would certainly be capable of carrying a card — but there are fans who are calling for van Roosmalen to fight Sitsongpeenong again, given the controversy over the decision. Either fight would surely do great for GLORY, so this sounds like a good problem to have.

[GLORY]