Jerome Le Banner Will Return Against Stefan Leko June 11th

Jerome Le Banner is scheduled to square off against Stefan Leko in a heavyweight bout in Geneva, Switzerland on June 11th.

A two-time K-1 World Grand Prix runner-up, Jerome Le Banner last fought at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2010 in Seoul Final 16 against Japanese heavyweight Kyotaro. In one of the more disappointing displays you'll see as a fan, the French heavyweight left the ring in protest following the announcement of an extension round, believing he had done enough to secure victory in the first three rounds.

While Stefan Leko hasn't matched that sort of controversy, he was recently forced to vacate his World Kickboxing Network heavyweight title after years without any sort of defense of the belt.

This will not be the first bout between Le Banner and Leko. The two first met at the K-1 Survival 2001 event in Sendai (watch in two parts: Part 1, Part 2). Le Banner entered the bout having not lost since the K-1 World Grand Prix 1999, his streak standing at over a dozen bouts, with a lone no contest stemming from an action-packed but unfortunately abbreviated bout against Mike Bernardo in March 2001. Ultimately, the French heavyweight secured a decision against Leko after a hard-fought bout.

A decade later and Le Banner will surely still be the favorite going into the rematch. The French heavyweight has continued to compete against top fighters, while Leko has struggled even against somewhat lesser competition. Leko went 3-2 in 2010, a win over Nikolaj Falin sticking out in a selection of bouts that also includes stoppage losses to Wendell Roche and Frederic Sinistra. For his part, Le Banner fought three times in 2010, beginning the year with a victory over Tyrone Spong and ending it with the aforementioned abbreviated bout against Kyotaro.