Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship

On August 20, 2021, BKFC was involved in controversy after the death of boxer Justin Thornton at BKFC 20.[11] Justin Thornton died as a result of spinal injury suffered during his BKFC debut.[12] Thornton had been on a five-fight losing streak ahead of the fight. The matchmaking and regulations were criticised following the news on social media and by UFC president Dana White.[13]

Initially, BKFC pay-per-view bouts were carried worldwide via FITE TV. On July 24, 2020 it was announced that starting on August, DAZN will be streaming BKFC events.[14] In February 2023, Fite announced to include all events to its Fite+ subscription service.[15]

BKFC holds all bouts in a circular four-rope ring, referred to as the "Squared Circle". This ring incorporates elements of historical bare knuckle fighting by containing two scratch lines, three feet apart and in the middle of the ring. These scratch lines are based on the Broughton Rules, which governed bare knuckle fighting in the 19th century. It is a requirement that each fighter must start each round with their front foot on their scratch line. This is referred to as “Toe the Line”, and it is an instruction given to the fighters at the beginning of each round, followed by "Knuckle Up" which signals the beginning of the round.[16]

Weight limit: above 210 lbs (95.3 kg)

The inaugural champion was determined by an 8-man tournament.[33]

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Arnold Adams def. Sam Shewmaker	BKFC 3 Biloxi, Mississippi	October 20, 2018
2	Chase Sherman	BKFC 7 Biloxi, Mississippi	August 10, 2019
3	Joey Beltran	BKFC 9 Biloxi, Mississippi	November 16, 2019	1. def. Marcel Stamps at BKFC 13 on October 10, 2020 2. def. Sam Shewmaker at BKFC 18 on June 26, 2021
4	Arnold Adams (2)	BKFC Fight Night: New York Salamanca, New York	November 6, 2021	1. def. Dillon Cleckler at BKFC 25 on May 6, 2022
5	Alan Belcher	BKFC 36: Adams vs. Belcher Kenner, Louisiana	February 24, 2023
Belcher was stripped of the title in June 2023 after he accepted a boxing fight outside the organization against Hasim Rahman Jr.[34]

Weight limit: 210 lbs (95.3 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Héctor Lombard def. Joe Riggs	BKFC 18 Miami, Florida	June 26, 2021
The Cruiserweight title was vacated.
2	Lorenzo Hunt def. Quentin Henry	BKFC 30: Monroe Monroe, Louisiana	October 1, 2022	1. def. Chris Camozzi at BKFC 50 on September 22, 2023

Weight limit: 190 lbs (86.2 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Lorenzo Hunt def. Héctor Lombard	BKFC 22 Miami, Florida	November 12, 2021	1. def. Joe Riggs at BKFC 24 on April 30, 2022 2. def. interim champion Mike Richman at KnuckleMania 3 on February 17, 2023
-	Mike Richman def. Isaac Doolittle for interim title	BKFC 31 Broomfield, Colorado	October 15, 2022
Josh Dyer and Jared Warren fought to a No-Contest on July 14, 2023, at BKFC 47 for the BKFC Light Heavyweight interim title.

Weight limit: 175 lbs (79.3 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Thiago Alves def. Ulysses Diaz	BKFC 18 Miami, Florida	June 26, 2021
Alves was stripped of the title in June 2022 after he and the organization were not able to reach agreement on new contract.[35]
-	Francesco Ricchi def. Ulysses Diaz for the interim title	BKFC 26 Hollywood, Florida	June 24, 2022
2	David Mundell def. Francesco Ricchi for undisputed title	BKFC 34 Hollywood, Florida	December 3, 2022	1. def. Mike Richman at BKFC 47 on July 14, 2023

Weight limit: 165 lbs (74.8 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Elvin Brito def. Kaleb Harris	BKFC Fight Night: Jackson Jackson, Mississippi	January 29, 2022
2	Luis Palomino	BKFC 26 Hollywood, Florida	June 24, 2022
The Welterweight title was vacated.
3	Gorjan Slaveski def. Jake Lindsey	BKFC 49 Miami	August 25th, 2023

Weight limit: 155 lbs (70.3 kg)

The inaugural champion was determined by a 4-man tournament. This title was previously referred to as the BKFC Super Welterweight Championship before being renamed.

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Luis Palomino def. Isaac Vallie-Flagg	BKFC 11 Oxford, Mississippi	July 24, 2020	1. def. Jim Alers at BKFC 14 on November 13, 2020 2. def. Tyler Goodjohn at BKFC 18 on June 26, 2021 3. def. Dat Nguyen at BKFC 22 on November 12, 2021 4. def. Martin Brown at BKFC: KnuckleMania 2 on February 19, 2022 5. def. Tom Shoaff at BKFC 34 on December 3, 2022 6. def. James Lilley at BKFC 45 on June 23, 2023

Weight limit: 145 lbs (65.8 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Kai Stewart def. Louie Lopez	BKFC 44 Great Falls, Montana	June 9, 2023

Weight limit: 135 lbs (61.2 kg)

The inaugural champion was determined by an 8-man tournament. This title was previously referred to as the BKFC Lightweight Championship before being renamed.

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Johnny Bedford def. Reggie Barnett Jr.	BKFC 6 Tampa, Florida	June 22, 2019
2	Dat Nguyen	BKFC: KnuckleMania Lakeland, Florida	February 5, 2021
Nguyen was stripped of the title in June 2021 after he and the organization were not able to reach agreement on new contract.[35]
3	Johnny Bedford (2) def. Reggie Barnett Jr.	BKFC 20 Biloxi, Mississippi	August 20, 2021
—	Jarod Grant def. Anthony Retic for interim title	BKFC Fight Night: New York 2 Salamanca, New York	March 12, 2022
—	Reggie Barnett Jr. def. Jarod Grant for interim title	BKFC FN: Tampa 2 Tampa, Florida, USA.	July 23, 2022	1. def. Geane Herrera at BKFC 32 on November 5, 2022
Bedford retired from combat sports.
4	Reggie Barnett Jr. promoted to undisputed champion		January, 2023	1. def. Daniel Alvarez at BKFC 39 on March 24, 2023
5	Keith Richardson def. Reggie Barnett Jr.	BKFC 52: South Carolina	October 20, 2023

Weight limit: 125 lbs (57.2 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	John Dodson def. JR Ridge	BKFC 48 Albuquerque, New Mexico	August 11, 2023

Weight limit: 125 lbs (56.7 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Christine Ferea def. Britain Hart	BKFC KnuckleMania 2 Hollywood, Florida	February 19, 2022	1. def. Taylor Starling at BKFC 28 on August 27, 2022 2. def. Bec Rawlings at BKFC 41 on April 29, 2023

Weight limit: 115 lbs (52.2 kg)

No.	Name	Event	Date	Defenses
1	Britain Hart def. Charisa Sigala	BKFC 29 Great Falls, Montana	September 10, 2022	1. def. Jenny Clausius at BKFC 39 on March 24, 2023 2. def. Melanie Shah at BKFC 51 on September 29, 2023