Going into the next round of the €1m Oktagon welterweight tournament, Louis Glisman feels well prepared – including on the mental side of things.
Glismann (10-2), a Danish standout on a triple-win streak that includes a win over UFC alum Emil Weber Meek, told Cageside Press recently that when it comes to mental preparation, “I do a lot of imagining a fight. I have a few phrases. I prepare myself.” To get the right state of flow. And just do good things for yourself – taking ice baths, saunas, meditation. Focus on finding the warriors within you to be strong.”
Glismann lives near the sea, and has the option of jumping directly into the ocean to take ice baths. This is one of the benefits of living in Copenhagen, Denmark, where mixed martial arts continue to grow.
“The sport is growing a lot, but it’s not as mainstream as it is in the United States. We’re still a little behind, but we have a lot of good fighters here,” Glisman noted. Of course, Mads Burnell and Mark O. Madsen are among the biggest Danish names in sports – but Copenhagen’s major promotion hasn’t taken place since before COVID. However, the UFC got there in 2019.
“It was a great show, man. It was very noisy. I think they should definitely put an event here again,” suggested Griezmann. “Because it’s also in the middle of Scandinavia; People can come from Norway, Sweden, Poland and Germany. The scene is growing, but there are still a few more steps to go in becoming a more mainstream sport like it is in the United States.”
Meanwhile, Glismann has his own career to focus on. Based in the Czech Republic, Octagon has raised funds that are rarely seen outside of major promotions for the 16-man welterweight championship.
“I never expected it, but of course I always aimed for it. It’s really a really, really nice post-fight purse, I think it’s the best in European tournaments,” Glismann told us about the potential windfall to win the tournament. “And this Octagon show is really cool. The audience is crazy here, there are almost 20,000 people at the O2 Arena in Prague. It is the largest in Europe. Yeah man to fight for this big fight bag is really cool, it’s really motivating.”
Another motivating factor: Gillisman has exactly the fight he was looking for in his second fight in the tournament. The selection process following the opening round involved a lottery – but by a stroke of luck, Glisman ended up with an early selection.
“When I got up there, there was only one guy standing on the bow. And that was Melvin van Suijdam. So I chose to fight against Melvin van Suijdam.” “That was perfect. I actually beat Melvin like five years ago. So my coaches, when they announced this kind of lottery where you get to choose your opponent if possible, my coach made a list of fighters that I should pick, and Melvin already put me in the first part. So when I had the chance to pick him up, I did, and that’s the perfect fight for me.”
Glissman added that five years ago, he had a “really dominant performance” in the first pairs fight. “I put a great show on it, it was a back-knee bar, pretty nice serve. So I’m looking forward to extending my highlight reel with another end by Melvin van Suijdam.”
Watch our full interview with Louis Glismann from Oktagon 43 above.