Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, the vision of David Feldman isn’t just another combat sports promotion, BKFC is an evolution! A mix of something old and something new that has truly carved out its own space in the world of combat sports, and they’re just getting started.
Last night Feldman stopped by to chat with us at Cage Side with Christopher James, and as always when we chat, we learned some things about BKFC that we didn’t know.
Feldman spoke about the growth, and how rapid it has come. While he stated that he always knew that this would be huge, even he has been surprised at just how fast that his promotion has been able to make the impact that it has. In just under 3 years he has promoted 16 events in multiple states across America. They’ve signed quite a few big-name fighters from various disciplines in combat sports. Investors are requesting meetings with Feldman to be a part of this, which to me is the most impressive thing accomplished to date. A new company with less than 3 years in business, especially in the world of combat sports normally would have to continue to chase funding to keep the dream alive, Feldman’s Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship has flipped the script as the money is now chasing him. Feldman told us that the promotion has been given a projected valuation in the next 3 years of $750,000,000! Yes, all those zeros equal 750 million dollars! If the trajectory of the company continues on this upward trend, I wouldn’t be shocked to see that number top 1 billion dollars!
The company has done the bulk of its shows in Mississippi and Florida, we here in the south have been spoiled! Stand by America, and the world, because BKFC could be headed your way sooner than you think!
Feldman dropped some new information on us concerning BKFC 17. Announcing it will take place April 30th, and that for the very first time BKFC will be held in the state of Alabama! Birmingham’s Boutwell Arena will be the hosting venue for this history-making event. Feldman also shared that BKFC 18 will be in Miami, no date given yet and that starting in June and carrying on through November the promotion will host events in 7 states that they haven’t been able to go to, until now. My belief is they will be sanctioned in all 50 states by the end of 2023.
The British invasion is back on! English fighters Tyler Goodjohn and Mark Godbeer, both didn’t seem to enjoy their first experience with the promotion. Some things were said in the media, arguments were had, it wasn’t fun for all involved parties. When I asked Feldman about both he said that fences were mended and that both men will be back, and Godbeer is expected to fight in May at BKFC 18 in Miami. I was excited to hear this news, especially concerning Godbeer. The man left his home and daughters behind for numerous weeks while he traveled to America to chase this BKFC career. He ended up with pneumonia and COVID and never had the chance to fight. Now we will get to see him perform against the best guys in the sport, and with the biggest promotion in the game, which is where Godbeer belongs.
With the growth and popularity of BKFC jumping on a daily basis the promotion will have to bring on more talent to fill cards, especially if they start doing events on both Friday and Saturday nights as Feldman mentioned that is a big part of the plan during our chat. While no names were dropped, we were told that in the coming days 6 females that they’ve signed are going to be announced, and in all 18 women are being added and that we will recognize some familiar names, just in a new place.
I asked Feldman about Junior Dos Santos and Alistair Overeem, as well as Johnathan Ivey and Alex Nicholson. Feldman said that matchmaker Nate Shook is in talks with Ivey and that BKFC is 100% interested in being in the Alex Nicholson business. He also stated that he has been in touch with the camps of Overeem and Dos Santos. no contracts have been offered as both men needed time to relax, and think about their options before making the next move in their respective careers.
We were also teased with another announcement that could happen as early as today! When I asked if it had to do with how we were able to see the shows in the future, he said that the BKTV app is their focus as the primary place to view their events and that he has the opportunity to partner with a huge network that is available in millions of households, and that it would be something he would definitely do. Leading me to believe that we may see BKFC available on a network with both cable broadcasting and streaming platforms. ESPN, FOX Sports both came to my mind. And while he didn’t state that this big announcement that he deemed a game-changer, was a network deal, the vibe he was throwing out there did!
Talking with David Feldman is always fun and informative. You can watch the entire interview with him below our chat with Feldman starts at the 1hour 1 minute mark.
Christopher James has been in the MMA industry for 15 years, Working as a ring announcer for promotions like the XFC, Island Fights, Combat Night and Fight Nights Global during his career. Chris’ love for the sport and the athletes that partake in it led him to writing and doing face to face interviews with the athletes he admired and respected. Chris isn’t conventional by any stretch of the imagination, he has his own style, and takes pride in not being a “cookie-cutter” member of the media. Unique and sometimes controversial takes are what he brings to the table, forcing folks to think a little differently about the world of MMA. He also has a love for music as he has been a dj for 25 years and his love for music gets brought to the MMA world when he gets his guests to sing on his weekly show Cage Side with Christopher James which can be seen Wednesday nights on FACEBOOK LIVE, and soon via podcast.