Kickboxing: Joe Schilling Accuses Artem Levin of Faking Injury to Get out of Title Fight

Glory kickboxing middleweight contender Joe Schilling this week slammed champion Artem Levin, accusing the Russian of faking an injury in order to withdraw from Friday’s Glory 24 event in Denver.

The rubber match between Levin and Schilling was set to headline the event until a few weeks ago, when Levin withdrew citing an elbow injury. Dutch prospect Jason Wilnis, runner-up in the Glory 20 middleweight contender tournament, stepped up to replace the champ.

“I was supposed to fight Artem Levin, but he didn’t want to fight me, so instead I am fighting Jason Wilnis because he was a man and stepped up,” Schilling fumed at Wednesday’s open workouts. “So, now I’m fighting to earn a title shot which has already been mine anyway.

Schilling’s accusations continued when he told media members that Levin withdrew because he did not want to face “Stitch ‘Em Up” on American soil.

“I’m just really f--king annoyed. I only took the fight on short notice because it was against Artem. Artem is not hurt, he has been training,” said Schilling. “I’ll tell you guys what you don’t know: Artem is not fighting me because this fight is not in Russia. He is only willing to fight me in Russia... After [our] last fight, he had been talking about having the next title fight in Russia. Well, the Glory executives have [apparently] told him [that it’s possible], so that’s what the issue is.”

The 31-year-old Ohio native then addressed Levin directly.

“You’re not hurt. You’re scared, and you should be. I am going to beat Jason and take the belt,” Schilling said. “You haven’t hurt you elbow. This is some chicken s--t, same as you did when we were supposed to fight for the WBC title, when I was the interim champion and you were the champion, but you chose to fight some guy in France that nobody ever heard of.”

Schilling debuted at Glory 10 in Los Angeles and made an immediate impact by winning the four-man middleweight championship tournament, beating Levin on points in the final. He had chased a fight with Levin for several years, in muay Thai and in kickboxing, and was ecstatic with the win.

Levin became champion by winning the Glory 17 “Last Man Standing” tournament last year, beating Schilling in the final. In 2015, Schilling has competed in both MMA and kickboxing, and he says his plans for 2016 are to continue “fighting and making money.”

“I have accomplished more than any American has ever accomplished in kickboxing. I’m a three-time world champion. I fight for money, I make a lot of money doing it both in MMA and Glory,” Schilling claimed. “I should be fighting for the title. I’m not, but I am still going to get paid on the night. Artem didn’t want to fight, so he is not getting paid.

“It’s gonna look like every other Joe Schilling fight: ‘Fight of the Night,’ exciting performance. I have never had a boring fight in my life. I think every fight I have ever had has been ‘Fight of the Night.’ I am coming to win the fight and continue to build my brand to make the money to support my family.”