Eduard Gafencu (born February 9, 1993) is a

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

kickboxer Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid martial art and boxing type based on punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouth guards, shorts, and ...

and former professional boxing, boxer. He currently competes in the Welterweight division for Glory (kickboxing), Glory. Gafencu is the first fighter to become a two-division Colosseum Tournament champion, holding titles in two weight classes simultaneously. He has also competed for Dynamite Fighting Show (DFS). As of 18 August 2020, he is the #14 ranked welterweight in the world, according to the International Professional Combat Council (IPCC).

Early life

Gafencu played Association football, soccer from 7 to 14 years old, but quit after an injury. He also practiced Swimming (sport), swimming. Gafencu then started boxing at the age of 15, but after a short while he switched to kickboxing. At the age of 16 and a half, he had his first fight and practiced kickboxing until the age of 21, culminating in a three-year hiatus.

Professional kickboxing career

Gafencu entered the professional circuit in 2017, after being initiated by the coach Gabriel Moț from Top Fighters Club and taken over from Arnold Nagy (Metalbox) by the Ruben Stoia Boxing Club.

Colosseum Tournament

Gafencu competed for various regional Romanian promotions, in the process amassing a record of 6–0. In 2018, Gafencu had signed a contract with the Colosseum Tournament. He took part in a four-man Light middleweight, super welterweight tournament to determine the Colosseum Tournament's first Colosseum Tournament World Super Welterweight Champion. Gafencu faced Adrian Cibu on September 17, 2018, in the semi-final of the 2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 8, Super Welterweight Tournament. He won the fight in emphatic fashion via knockout in round one to progress to the final round of the tournament. Gafencu faced Leonard Dorin's student Adelin Mihăilă at 2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 8, Colosseum Tournament 8 in the finals. Gafencu won the match via knockout in the third round. The triumph also earned Gafencu his first ''Performance of the Night'' award. Gafencu faced Flavius Boiciuc on December 14, 2018, at 2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 10, Colosseum Tournament 10. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Gafencu faced the Fight Institute by Peter Aerts's Thomas Doeve on March 29, 2019, at 2019 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 11, Colosseum Tournament 11. He won the fight via knockout in round one. This win earned him his second ''Performance of the Night'' award. The tornado kick knockout has been also acknowledged by sites like Sherdog, MMA Fighting, MMAjunkie.com and others as the potential Knockout of the Year for 2019. Gafencu moved down to the Welterweight (MMA), welterweight division. He faced the Bonjasky Academy's Ekrem Doruk for the inaugural Colosseum Tournament Welterweight Championship, Colosseum Tournament World Welterweight Championship on May 9, 2019, in the main event of 2019 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 12, Colosseum Tournament 12. He won the fight via knockout in the second round, becoming the first Colosseum Tournament fighter to win titles in two weight classes. This win earned him the ''Performance of the Night'' award for a third time.

Dynamite Fighting Show

On January 23, 2020, it was announced that Gafencu had signed a deal with Dynamite Fighting Show. In his debut fight for the promotion, Gafencu faced the Hemmers Gym's Benjamin Masudi on March 5, 2020, at 2020 in Romanian kickboxing#Dynamite Fighting Show 7, Dynamite Fighting Show 7. Eduard Gafencu knocked down Masudi twice in the fight. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Return to Colosseum Tournament

In September 2020, it was announced that Gafencu signed a deal to return to the Colosseum Tournament. In his return bout, Gafencu was expected to face Adelin Mihăilă in rematch on October 23, 2020, at 2020 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 20, Colosseum Tournament 20. However on October 6, it was announced that Mihăilă pulled out due to his COVID-19 recovery, and he was replaced by Alexandru Ianţoc. Gafencu won the fight via knockout in the second round. Gafencu faced Anghel Cardoş in a 3-round non-title on February 26, 2021, at 2021 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 23, Colosseum Tournament 23. He lost the fight via decision. The result was seen as highly controversial. Following his first professional loss, Gafencu returned to face Flavius Boiciuc at 2021 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 25, Colosseum Tournament 25. He won the fight by unanimous decision.

Fighting style

In 2019, Gafencu earned public praise from Romanian legend Daniel Ghiță for his ring performances. He was described by Ghiță as "a highly talented kickboxer". On October 23, 2020, Gafencu proposed to Carmen Rus at 2020 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 20, Colosseum Tournament 20. They have one son.

Championships and accomplishments

Kickboxing

*Colosseum Tournament **Colosseum Tournament Welterweight Championship, Colosseum Tournament World Welterweight Championship (One, inaugural) **Colosseum Tournament Super Welterweight Championship, Colosseum Tournament World Super Welterweight Championship (One, inaugural) **2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 8, Colosseum Tournament World Super Welterweight Championship Tournament Winner **Performance of the Night (Four times) vs. Adrian Cibu & Adelin Mihăilă, Thomas Doeve, Ekrem Doruk and Anghel Cardoş **First multi-divisional champion in Colosseum Tournament history *Dynamite Fighting Show **2023 Comeback of the Year **2023 Fight of the Year vs. Ștefan Orza at 2023 in Romanian kickboxing#Dynamite Fighting Show 20, DFS 20https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=742746051216367&set=pcb.742746264549679 **Fight of the Night (One time) vs. Benjamin Masudi *RT (TV network), Russia Today **2019 Knockout of the Year vs. Thomas Doeve

Kickboxing record

, - style="background:#fbb;" , 2024-06-13, , Loss , , align=left, Alexandru Amariței , , 2024 in K-1#K-1 Fighting Network Romania 2024, K-1 Fighting Network Romania 2024 , , Galați,

, , TKO (leg injury) , , 1 , , 2:58 , , 17-7 , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2023-10-07 , , Loss , , align=left, Teodor Hristov , , 2023 in Glory#Glory 89, Glory 89 , , Burgas, Bulgaria , , Decision (unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 17-6 , - , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2023-09-22 , , Loss , , align=left, Ștefan Orza , , 2023 in Romanian kickboxing#Dynamite Fighting Show 20, Dynamite Fighting Show 20 - Welterweight Championship Tournament, Semi Finals , , Bucharest, Romania , , Decision (unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 17-5 , - , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2023-06-17, , Loss , , align=left, Diaguely Camara , , 2023 in Glory#Glory: Collision 5, Glory: Collision 5 , , Rotterdam, Netherlands , , TKO (knee) , , 2 , , 2:24 , , 17-4 , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2023-03-12 , , Win , , align=left, Mădălin Crăciunică , , 2023 in Romanian kickboxing#Dynamite Fighting Show 18, DFS 18 - Welterweight Championship Tournament, Quarter Finals , , Timișoara, Romania , , TKO (three knockdowns) , , 1 , , 2:50 , , 17-3 , - , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2022-08-18 , , Loss , , align=left, Alexandru Amariței , , 2022 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 34, Colosseum Tournament 34 , , Brașov, Romania , , Decision (unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , , 16-3 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2022-05-09 , , Win , , align=left, Robert Gontineac , , 2022 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 31, Colosseum Tournament 31 , , Arad, Romania , , TKO (towel thrown) , , 2 , , 1:24 , , 16-2 , - , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2022-04-08 , , Loss , , align=left, Joakim Hägg , , 2022 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 30, Colosseum Tournament 30 , , Malmö, Sweden , , Decision (unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 15-2 , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2021-09-20 , , Win , , align=left, Anghel Cardoş , , 2021 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 27, Colosseum Tournament 27 , , Oradea, Romania , , Decision (unanimous) , , 5 , , 3:00 , , 15-1 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2021-05-31 , , Win , , align=left, Flavius Boiciuc , , 2021 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 25, Colosseum Tournament 25 , , Cluj-Napoca, Romania , , Decision (unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 14-1 , - , - style="background:#fbb;" , 2021-02-26 , , Loss , , align=left, Anghel Cardoş , , 2021 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 23, Colosseum Tournament 23 , , Bucharest, Romania , , Decision (majority) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 13-1 , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2020-10-23 , , Win , , align=left, Alexandru Ianţoc , , 2020 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 20, Colosseum Tournament 20 , , Arad, Romania , , KO (jumping knee) , , 2 , , 2:25 , , 13-0 , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2020-03-05 , , Win , , align=left, Benjamin Masudi , , 2020 in Romanian kickboxing#Dynamite Fighting Show 7, DFS 7 , , Arad, Romania , , Decision (unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 12-0 , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2019-05-09 , , Win , , align=left, Ekrem Doruk , , 2019 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 12, Colosseum Tournament 12 , , Arad, Romania , , KO (jumping knee and punches) , , 2 , , 2:13 , , 11-0 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2019-03-29 , , Win , , align=left, Thomas Doeve , , 2019 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 11, Colosseum Tournament 11 , , Bucharest, Romania , , KO (tornado kick) , , 1 , , 2:19 , , 10-0 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2018-12-14 , , Win , , align=left, Flavius Boiciuc , , 2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 10, Colosseum Tournament 10 , , Timișoara, Romania , , Decision (unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 9-0 , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2018-09-17 , , Win , , align=left, Adelin Mihăilă , , 2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 8, Colosseum Tournament 8, Final , , Bucharest, Romania , , KO (right hook & double left hook) , , 3 , , 0:22 , , 8-0 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2018-09-17 , , Win , , align=left, Adrian Cibu , , 2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Colosseum Tournament 8, Colosseum Tournament 8, Semi-final , , Bucharest, Romania , , KO (flurry of punches) , , 1 , , 2:57 , , 7-0 , - ! style=background:white colspan=9 , , - , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2018-01-28 , , Win , , align=left, Paul Crețiu , , 2018 in Romanian kickboxing#Fighters League 2, Fighters League 2 , , Reșița, Romania , , Decision (unanimous) , , 3 , , 3:00 , , 6-0 , - , - , colspan=9 , ''Legend'':

Professional boxing record

References

External links

*
Eduard Gafencu at Tapology.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gafencu, Eduard 1993 births Living people Sportspeople from Arad, Romania Romanian male kickboxers Light heavyweight kickboxers Glory kickboxers Romanian male boxers Super-middleweight boxers Eastern Orthodox Christians from Romania Kickboxing champions 21st-century Romanian sportsmen