Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship United Kingdom
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship UK. In September 2022 it was announced that Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship had formed Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship UK (BKFC UK) by acquiring the existing UK based Bare Fist Boxing Association (BFBA).[1]
The Ring
BKFC UK 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. This ring is unique within bare knuckle boxing and in part contributes to the sports appeal.[2]
History
BKFC UK's first event was announced as taking place on 26 November 2022[3] in Newcastle upon Tyne with the headline bout being a BKFC Heavyweight Title Elimination Bout contested by Mick Terrill of Newcastle and Steve ‘Panda’ Banks of America via Thailand. Other notable bouts included Darren Hendry v Anthony Holmes[4] and Danny Christie[5][6] v Darren Godfrey Jr. The UK's first female Muslim fighter[7] Melanie Shah of Birmingham UK made her bare knuckle debut taking on Mathilda Wilson of Sweden, Shah emerged victorious taking a split decision win. Melanie Shah is also the first British female to fight for BKFC.[8][9]
Events
BKFC UK 1
BKFC 1 Was held on the 26th November 2022 at The Walker Activity Dome in Newcastle-upon-Tyne. A capacity crowd of 1,700 were in attendance to watch a 10-bout fight card with the first 3 bouts being broadcast live on YouTube with the remaining maincard bouts being broadcast live via the BKFC App. The Main Event saw local fighter Mick Terrill take on Steve 'Panda' Banks in a BKFC Heavyweight title eliminator with Terrill emerging victorious after Banks was ruled unfit to continue by the ringside doctor due to heavy cuts around his eyes. The co-main event saw Darren Hendry meet Anthony Holmes to challenge for the inaugural BKFC UK Cruiserweight title, with Anthony Holmes securing victory in round 4 by way of KO after landing a heavy blow to the nose of Darren Hendry. The event also saw the debut of the UK's first female Muslim fighter Melanie Shah who emerged victorious with a split decision win over Mathilda Wilson of Sweden.
| BLUE CORNER | RED CORNER | RESULT |
|---|---|---|
| Michael Terrill | Steven Banks | Terrill Round 5 |
| Anthony Holmes | Darren Hendry | Holmes Round 4 |
| Danny Christie | Darren Godfrey Jr | Christie Round 1 |
| Will Cairns | Liam Wilson | Wilson Round 2 |
| Tom Scott | John Ferguson | Ferguson Round 5 |
| Lee Browne | Billy Hawthorn | Browne Round 2 |
| David Round | Natahn Owens | Owens Round 5 |
| Lewis Keen | Lewy Sheriff | Keen Round 3 |
| Mathilda Wilson | Melanie Shah | Shah Round 5 |
| Agi Faulkner | Daniel Robson | Faulkner Round 1 |
BKFC UK 2 - BKFC 37
BKFC UK's second event is scheduled for 4 March 2023 and will be held at the Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, London. In a departure from the inaugural BKFC UK event, the second event is to be a numbered BKFC event - BKFC 37 - with the main event a BKFC Welterweight Title eliminator bout to be contested between Connor Tierney and Jake Lindsey.
List of Current Champions
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship UK (BKFC UK)
| Weight Class | Holder |
|---|---|
| BKFCUK | |
| Heavyweight / 265 lb (120 kg; 19 st) | |
| Cruiserweight / 205 lb (93 kg; 15 st) | Anthony Holmes |
| Light Heavyweight / 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st) | Danny Christie |
| Middleweight / 175 lb (79 kg; 13 st) | |
| Welterweight / 165 lb (75 kg; 12 st) | |
| Lightweight / 155 lb (70 kg; 11 st) | |
| Bantamweight / 135 lb (61 kg; 10 st) | |
See also
References
- "BKFC Acquires England's Bare Fist Boxing Association". Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
- Bosco, Nicole (30 May 2018). "Everything you need to know about Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship". Retrieved 11 November 2022.
- "BoxRec: Event". boxrec.com. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
- "Yorkshire Warrior Anthony Holmes ready for return to action after switching to BKFC promotion". www.wakefieldexpress.co.uk. 10 November 2022. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
- "New opponent for Carlisle bare-knuckle boxer". News and Star. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
- "Carlisle bare-knuckle boxer's next fight revealed". News and Star. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
- "Melanie set to become first female Muslim bare knuckle fighter".
- "Asian Express Newspaper - VALIANT: UK's first female Muslim bare knuckle fighter makes winning debut". 12 December 2022.
- Williams, Rebecca (24 August 2020). "Jawahir Roble: UK's first female Muslim official dreams of refereeing Premier League games". Sky Sports. Retrieved 9 April 2023.