In Saturday’s Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) main event at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, local heavyweight Parker Porter climbed to 3-0 at the expense of the previously unbeaten Anthony “The Warrior of Christ” Garrett in one of the craziest fights in the history of BKFC’s heavyweight division. Porter scored the first knockdown of the night before being dropped three times in the opening round. He survived an early onslaught in the opening seconds of the second frame before the UFC vet rallied for the KO 42 seconds into the second stanza. Porter, who’s now 3-0 with three knockouts called for his shot at the winner of “Big” Ben Rothwell’s upcoming BKFC heavyweight title defense against Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski set for Feb. 7th at Xfinity Mobile Arena in Philadelphia. “I want that belt,” the fan-favorite Porter told the jam-packed Mohegan Sun Arena. “Wherever you have to put me to get it, that’s where I’m going.I don’t stop, man,” he added. “You’ve gotta kill me to stop me. I'm relentless. You have to kill me to stop me.” Garrett, who represents Dallas, TX, is now 3-1 under the BKFC banner.
Saturday’s event was the record-breaking 33rd BKFC event of the year, and streamed live worldwide on The BKFC App.
Massachusetts' Pat “The Gorilla Ninja” Casey ran through previously unbeaten David “The Sandman” Sanchez in the opening round of their middleweight showdown. Casey recorded a pair of knockdowns before the contest was stopped with 13 seconds left in the first round. Casey is now 3-2 on the strength of back-to-back, first-round finishes. “This is my house. I run the Sun. I’ve fought here many times. This is my backyard, and I run this place,” Casey said in his post-fight interview. “I think I’m one of the best in the world, and I want to fight whoever will give me the opportunity to show that.” The Hurricane, UT product Sanchez is now 2-1 under the BKFC banner.
Abington, MA’s Peter “Slippery Pete” Barrett improved to 2-0, defeating Anthony “The Pistol” Pike via split decision in their back-and-forth, lightweight battle. Barrett, a UFC vet, took home the win on two scorecards (49-46, 48-47), while one judge scored it for Pike (48-47). Pike, who hails from Tucson, AZ, was making his BKFC debut.
Gary “Batman” Balletto Jr., of Cranston, RI smashed his way to 2-0 under the BKFC banner with a second straight stoppage, sending Skyler Mauller to the canvas five times en route to the second-round KO in middleweight action. The fight was stopped 29 seconds into the second frame. Balletto Jr., is the son of New England boxing legend Gary Balletto Sr.. Mauller, who represents New Lexington, OH, is now 1-2.
Worcester, MA’s “Slick” Sito Navarro climbed to 4-1 with his third straight win on Saturday, edging out Anthony “Leonidas” Sanchez for a split decision victory in their bantamweight battle. Two judges scored it for Navarro (49-46, 48-47), and one judge scored it in favor of Sanchez (49-47). The Midland, TX fighter Sanchez falls to 1-3 in defeat.
Gabrielle Roman of Perth Amboy, NJ earned her second BKFC victory when the ringside physician stopped her strawweight matchup with Crystal “The Lovely” Van Wyk due to a cut around the eye of Van Wyk. The TKO stoppage came at the conclusion of the opening round. Roman is now 2-3, with both of her wins coming by first-round stoppage. Van Wyk, who hails from Hudson, FL by way of Cape Town, South Africa, is now 2-2 in her BKFC career.
Peabody, MA’s Rico DiSciullo upped his BKFC record to 2-0 with a 41-second KO at the expense of Stash “The Flash” Kuykendall in lightweight action. Both of DiSciullo’s BKFC victories have come by stoppage. The Fort Smith, AR product Kuykendall is now 0-2 under the BKFC banner.
Waterbury, CT’s Guilherme Viana shined in his BKFC debut, dropping Aleem “The Hammer” Whitfield twice en route to the second-round KO in their heavyweight matchup. The bout was stopped with one second left in the second round. Whitfield, a product of Geneva, NY and a former trialist for the United States Olympics gloved boxing team, is now 0-2 in the Squared Circle.
Tewksbury, MA’s Joe “Bam Bam” Peters smashed his way to 2-0 in the squared circle after the referee called a stop to his light heavyweight fight with David Burke at the conclusion of the opening round. Peters picked himself up off the canvas and rallied with a pair of knockdowns. Both of his BKFC wins have come by first-round finish. Burke, who represents Sommerworth, NH, was making his BKFC debut.
Travis “The Outlaw” Demko lived up to his nickname in his BKFC debut as the Stoughton, MA product was disqualified from his lightweight matchup with Omaha, NE’s Ashton “No Chance” Caniglia, who was also stepping into the Squared Circle, due to continued illegal eye pokes. Demko was deducted a point in the third round before the referee called a stop to the contest 34 seconds into the fourth round, with Caniglia taking home the victory by DQ.
