The UTMA 21 ring will be shaken by a super heavyweight kickboxing match, featuring the arrival in Lithuania of one of the best fighters in this weight category in the world – Mantas Rimdeika will accept the challenge of Nico Pereira Horta at home.
This will be the main event of the evening in the over 95 kg weight category, scheduled for three rounds.
The UTMA 21 tournament will take place on November 28 in Kaunas, at the Žalgiris Arena. Tickets are distributed by kakava.lt, and the PPV broadcast can be purchased at UTMA.lt.
N. Horta, who is also known by his nickname “Big Sexy”, is one of the best super heavyweight kickboxers on the planet. He currently ranks 6th in the “Beyond Kick” rankings.
“This is the execution of long-term UTMA goals to increase the organization’s awareness not only in Lithuania but also in Europe. We have communicated with fighters of this caliber a couple of years ago as well, but perhaps at that time they didn’t believe in us yet and we couldn’t lure them in. Now, when our highest caliber stars, such as Stanionis or Maslobojevas, fight in the UTMA organization, everything has become clear to the best fighters in the world as well – we are the place where they can come. We just need to fulfill their conditions and Horta will be here,” stated UTMA Head Viktoras Gecas.
Throughout his entire career, N. Horta has secured 27 victories and suffered 13 defeats. The fighter has also left a prominent mark in the GLORY organization, where he has achieved 4 victories and suffered 3 defeats. The brightest moment in his career probably came in 2025 – in the qualification stage of the special GLORY tournament “Last Heavyweight Standing”, he knocked out the Serbian Rade Opačić, and this knockout brought him the GLORY Upset of the Year award. Ultimately, after winning two more fights, N. Horta also entered the main super heavyweight tournament.
“In my eyes, Horta is the highest-level foreign kickboxing fighter in the entire history of UTMA’s existence. Our goal is not one-off appearances; this is a long-term perspective. We are talking not only with Horta but also with other top-level foreign fighters who hold high places in the overall rankings. I think the winner of this fight would be an excellent future opponent for Ignas Pauliukevičius,” spoke V. Gecas.
N. Horta’s opponent will be M. Rimdeika, who will defend his home walls in Kaunas. In the UTMA organization, the fighter has two victories and zero defeats. Also, during his career, M. Rimdeika has appeared in other prestigious global kickboxing organizations – GLORY and SENSHI.
“In this weight category in Lithuania, we don’t have any more fighters of this caliber like Rimdeika. He himself has also fought in the GLORY organization. This fight, as I have mentioned, will be difficult and important not only in terms of weight. I think it will not last three rounds; someone’s strike will be decisive and end it ahead of time,” stated V. Gecas.
According to V. Gecas, the arrival of a fighter of N. Horta’s level in the UTMA organization symbolizes another step for the organization onto the international stage and a statement about its place among the elite kickboxing organizations in Europe.
“This is the first stage of the first step in entering the global scene. Many people ask me: when will we organize tournaments in other countries? First of all, I want the best fighters in the world to come to Lithuania, to Kaunas. Currently, this city is one of the combat sports epicenters in Europe,” spoke V. Gecas.
The UTMA 21 tournament will take place on November 28 in Kaunas, at the Žalgiris Arena. Tickets are distributed by kakava.lt, and the PPV broadcast can be purchased at UTMA.lt.
