[div class=”notice” class2=”icon”]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div]
With K-1’s stunning silence throughout the year 2011 there is no doubt that Dutch promotion It’s Showtime has picked up the slack that K-1 left and then some. It’s Showtime has grown from a smaller organization that promoted a few scattered events, which from 1999 until 2004 involved one big event a year, which eventually turned into one big event at the Amsterdam ArenA until 2005 when the promotion decided to branch out and run more events. In 2005 they held a series with Gentlemen’s Promotion that revolved around a massive 75kg tournament. The next year saw them co-promote with K-1 for the first time in what turned into a longstanding and beneficial relationship for both sides until recently, when K-1 fell upon massive financial woes and It’s Showtime decided to move forward in the wake of K-1’s absence.
This year is primed to be It’s Showtime’s biggest year yet, with last year holding 7 events and this year having 6 events already on their calendar and another three to four events in the works, but it doesn’t stop there. LiverKick.com has been speaking with It’s Showtime officials for a while now, and have understood that It’s Showtime was not just happy with European expansion and was indeed looking to expand into the United States. This led to talks with a few television stations and promotional partners, some deals falling apart and then some rumors over the past week of big things brewing for It’s Showtime.
