MMA News

Tag: BKFC KnuckleMania 5

  • Eddie Alvarez Reveals X-Ray Of Gruesome Broken Jaw Suffered In BKFC Loss

    Eddie Alvarez Reveals X-Ray Of Gruesome Broken Jaw Suffered In BKFC Loss

    Alongside his first statement on this past weekend’s result, Eddie Alvarez has revealed the brutal injury he sustained at BKFC KnuckleMania V.

    Alvarez, a former UFC lightweight champion, fell to a negative 1-2 record under the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship at Saturday’s high-profile event in his home city of Philadelphia.

    After splitting his first two outings in 2023 — defeating Chad Mendes before a corner stoppage gave Mike Perry victory at his expense — “The Underground King” headlined the fifth installment of KnuckleMania opposite fellow former UFC fighter Jeremy Stephens.

    After three rounds, Alvarez was deemed unable to continued by his corner, who chose to wave off the contest. That decision was widely supported, and anyone who questioned it likely won’t be anymore after seeing the damage “Lil Heathen” dealt his opponent’s way.

    In a recent post on Instagram, the defeated 41-year-old displayed an X-ray image showing the gruesome jaw break he suffered at the hands of Stephens.

    “Got hit with a kill shot in the first or second … I did my best to keep a Gameface and ignore it,” Alvarez wrote. “By the 3rd round the damage was too much. Please understand how bad I wanted this and what I sacrificed in order to Win, it wasn’t my night. Bare Knuckle is as real as it gets. Unpredictable, Fast Pace and violent …. Congrats to all the new Up and coming Philly stand outs @cody__fights @teamgarbarino @theanimalbkfc @hevweightbrady on their wins. You Men are the Future and made Philadelphia Proud, I’m soo Happy for our City and the future of our Combat Athletes.

    “Whether I win or lose is not as important as Philadelphia/Pennsylvania slowly becoming the most dominate Area in the country for Combat Sports. @bareknucklefc is the fastest Growing and will be the Greatest Show on Earth .. Mark my words 👊🏼👊🏼👊🏼👊🏼🙏🏼 Thank you Philadelphia for showing out … 👊🏼👊🏼”

    Alvarez didn’t provide an update on his fighting future in the caption of the post.

    Prior to a 13-month layoff, “The Underground King” had suffered two orbital fractures during his defeat to “Platinum” Perry in Salt Lake City.

  • ‘Make It Happen’ – Fans React To Jeremy Stephens Facing Off With Conor McGregor After Stopping Eddie Alvarez At BKFC KnuckleMania V

    ‘Make It Happen’ – Fans React To Jeremy Stephens Facing Off With Conor McGregor After Stopping Eddie Alvarez At BKFC KnuckleMania V

    In a battle of former power-punching UFC stars, Jeremy Stephens was able to come away with a huge victory, knocking out hometown hero Eddie Alvarez in Philadelphia in the main event of BKFC’s KnuckleMania V.

    The two started the fight with some feeling out before Alvarez connected with a pair of left jabs. “Lil Heathen” started to get a rhythm, but Alvarez got into his own groove, working Stephens over with crisp combinations.

    The former UFC champion started to work the body in the second round, but Stephens picked up his pace and power, landing stronger shots. Alvarez, however, took back control of the fight in the second half of the round.

    A right hand from “Lil Heathen” dropped Alvarez to start the third round. While “The Underground King” got back to his feet, Stephens aimed to get the finish, rushing forward and focusing on the jab.

    He was able to drop Alvarez with another right hand in the round’s closing seconds, and while the Philadelphia native saw the bell, his corner elected to wave the fight off after the round, giving Stephens the victory in enemy territory.

    Following his victory, Stephens had a faceoff with BKFC part-owner Conor McGregor, who once infamously asked who “Lil Heathen” was at a UFC press conference in 2016.

    Fans React As Jeremy Stephens Forces Corner Stoppage Of Eddie Alvarez, Faces Off With Conor McGregor

    https://twitter.com/MeterPeterD/status/1883385060864499999
    https://twitter.com/ProchazkaSzn/status/1883385722935337227

    Stephens now improves to 3-0 in the BKFC ring, having previously finished Jimmie Rivera and scored a decision over Bobby Taylor at BKFC 56 and BKFC 65, respectively.

    Alvarez, meanwhile, now falls to 1-2 in the promotion, having defeated Chad Mendes at BKFC 41 but lost to Mike Perry for the King of Violence Championship at BKFC 56.

  • Conor McGregor Claims BKFC KnuckleMania Set To Break UFC’s 14-Year Wells Fargo Center Gate Record

    Conor McGregor Claims BKFC KnuckleMania Set To Break UFC’s 14-Year Wells Fargo Center Gate Record

    The Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC), part-owned by Conor McGregor, looks set to host its biggest event to date in a few weeks’ time, and perhaps the biggest to grace Philadelphia’s Wells Fargo Center.

    Bare-knuckle fighting continues to gain further prominence, largely down to the growth of the BKFC. The organization hosts KnuckleMania as its flagship event each year, with the fifth edition set to go down from “The City of Brotherly Love” on Jan. 25.

    In the main event, former UFC fighters Eddie Alvarez and Jeremy Stephens will do battle. There will also be championship gold on the line beforehand, with veteran MMA heavyweight Ben Rothwell throwing down with Mick Terrill.

    Keeping a close eye on proceedings will be McGregor, a former two-division UFC champion whose part-ownership of BKFC was announced by president David Feldman at KnuckleMania 4 last year.

    “The Notorious” has been doing plenty of promotional work for the organization since, and the latest saw him react on social media to the release of additional tickets for this month’s major card.

    And during it, the Irishman made a strong claim about ticket sales for KnuckleMania 5, hinting that BKFC is in line to break the Wells Fargo Center arena record, which the UFC has held since 2011.

    “Biggest gate in the arena’s history? Oh yes! See you all there!” McGregor wrote. “BARE KNUCKLE ACTION LIVE FROM WELLS FARGO CENTER, PHILADELPHIA! #PhiladelphiaInaugralBKFCShow“

    The arena record was captured at UFC 133, where Rashad Evans and Tito Ortiz collided in the main event. The card also featured the likes of Vitor Belfort, Rory MacDonald, Alexander Gustafsson and Chad Mendes.

    That event generated a gate of $1.5 million, a figure the BKFC looks poised to surpass if McGregor’s words are to be believed.

  • BKFC KnuckleMania 5 To Feature Eddie Alvarez vs. Jeremy Stephens

    BKFC KnuckleMania 5 To Feature Eddie Alvarez vs. Jeremy Stephens

    BKFC is headed to Philadelphia this January for its first event in the historic “Quaker City.”

    On Tuesday, BKFC announced that the fifth installment of KnuckleMania will showcase a showdown between UFC veterans Eddie Alvarez and Jeremy Stephens. The highly anticipated bout is scheduled for Jan. 25 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

    “The Underground King” made a strong entrance into the world of bare-knuckle fighting with a victory over fellow UFC veteran Chad Mendes at BKFC 41 in April 2023. However, his momentum faltered in his second outing, suffering a TKO loss to BKFC’s marquee star Mike Perry in December.

    Now, Alvarez is gearing up for a homecoming, aiming to deliver a memorable performance in front of his hometown crowd in Philadelphia. This marks his first fight in the city in over 14 years, with his last appearance dating back to October 2010 when he secured a TKO win against Roger Huerta at Bellator 33.

    Meanwhile, Stephens remains unbeaten in his bare-knuckle career, having made a stunning debut with a third-round TKO victory over Jimmie Rivera at BKFC 56. “Lil Heathen” is riding high off a dominant unanimous decision win over Bobby Taylor at BKFC 65 this past September.

    The bare-knuckle promotion is making its long-awaited debut in Pennsylvania, following the state’s athletic commission granting official sanctioning for gloveless boxing in 2023.