Another BKFC event is in the bag after KnuckleMania 4 took place at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles. Once again, there was plenty of drama inside and outside the ring. During the broadcast, a video segment played in which Conor McGregor spoke to the camera and announced that he had become a part owner of Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. The news has sent shockwaves through the combat sports world and shows how far the organization has come in such a short space of time.
The news, unsurprisingly, meant that the BKFC President, David Feldman, was in high demand from the media after the event as we waited to get some more information regarding the partnership with Conor McGregor.
Knucklemania 4
Upwards of 7,000 people were in attendance at KnuckleMania 4, which Feldman viewed as a big success. He revealed that early figures indicate that over 12 million people tuned into the event worldwide, making it the most-viewed event in BKFC history.
David Diaz and Shane Jordan’s thrilling bout was rightfully awarded the ‘Fight of the Night’. In a testament to their exceptional performance, 12 additional bonuses were given to fighters who ‘put on a show’ in BKFC’s first event in California.
Former UFC fighter Mike Perry has quickly made a name for himself in the world of Bare Knuckle, and he made light work of his opponent, Thiago Alves, at KnuckleMania 4. Perry won via TKO after just sixty seconds of the main event and extended his unbeaten record in the organization to 5-0. What makes Perry’s record so impressive is the caliber of fighter he is beating. He’s defeated former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold and former lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez in BKFC. He also has a win over Bellator legend Michael ”Venom” Page and is one of the few people whose fighting career has ascended post leaving the UFC. David Feldman had some nice words to say about Mike Perry in the post-fight presser:
”Mike Perry was at the end of his UFC run; he wasn’t doing great in the UFC. I saw that people liked him so we brought him over here and gave him an opportunity in Bare Knuckle. He made the most of it and took advantage of it, and he’s the king of violence. He is the face of BKFC and probably one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in BKFC” – said Feldman.
Conor McGregor is now an owner of BKFC
The real reason there was so much media gathered for the post-fight press conference was to hear more about McGregor, and they were all waiting to ask Feldman to go into more detail about the announcement during the broadcast that the UFC superstar, Conor McGregor, was now an owner of Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. The journalists didn’t need to wait to ask, as Feldman obliged of his own accord:
”We entered into an agreement with a very large combat sports enthusiast, Conor McGregor. He is now an owner of BKFC with us, and we’re going to take this mother******* thing all the way to the top” – Feldman told the gathered media.
When asked more about the impact of the partnership with Conor McGregor on BKFC, Feldman said that ”The Notorious” is one of the most prominent combat sports athletes of all time and one of the most recognizable faces on the planet. He referenced the recent success of ‘Road House’, which became the most-watched film in Amazon Prime’s history. The reason for this, claimed Feldman, was not because of his acting skills or because of the star power of Jake Gyllenhaal but because Conor McGregor was in the movie.
The intricacies involved in McGregor’s partnership, along with the level of involvement the UFC star will have in the day-to-day of BKFC, remains to be seen. It will undoubtedly become more apparent in the next few weeks, particularly as McGregor will be involved in various interviews in the build-up to his blockbuster clash with Michael Chandler at UFC 303.
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