Former Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) World Champion Mike “The Marine” Richman was victorious in his highly anticipated return to the Squared Circle in the Main Event of BKFC Fight Night Clearwater on Friday at the sold-out OCC Road House & Museum in Clearwater, FL.
Richman, who hails from Minneapolis, MN, ended his nine-month layoff from fighting with a fifth-round TKO over Edcouch-Elsa, TX’s Erick “El Travieso” Lozano in the light-heavyweight division. Richman sent Lozano to the canvas twice before their fight was stopped 53 seconds into the fifth round.
"A lot of things went through my mind when I said I was going to retire, but I knew I still had a lot in me. That's what drew me back; I knew I still had a lot in me. That's why I'm here,” Richman told the Clearwater faithful.
“Erick Lozano is a beast; he’s a monster. I knew it was going to be a challenging fight … It was very important to show that I’m still a dog. I feel good and healthy again.”
Richman’s record is now 6-2, 1 NC; Lozano is now 3-3.
In Friday’s Co-Main Event, Elvin "El Bandido" Brito shocked fans with a jaw-dropping, 40-second TKO over the previously undefeated Ja’Far Fortt “Knox” in their highly anticipated welterweight matchup. The Puerto Rican Brito, a former BKFC World Champion, snapped a three-fight losing skid with his victory and upped his BKFC record to 6-4 with the win. Fortt, who hails from Tampa, FL, sees his record fall to 3-1 with the loss.
A fired-up Brito called out BKFC World Welterweight Champion Austin “No Doubt” Trout after his big win.
"Give me Trout. I'm the champ,” he told the sold-out OCC Road House & Museum crowd. “You're not the champ unless you beat me. I'm the champ; I'm at the top of the mountain."
Tyler “The Rookie” Randall, the No. 2 contender in the BKFC flyweight division, edged out No. 1 contender JR “The Lion” Ridge for the split-decision victory in Friday’s Feature Fight. Randall, a product of Hoosick Falls, NY, upped his BKFC record to 3-2 with the win, while the Filipino-born Tampa, FL fighter Ridge fell to 3-4. Two judges scored the bout in favor of Randall (49-46, 48-47), and one judge had it 48-47 for Ridge, a former BKFC World Flyweight Championship challenger.
Abdiel “The Nightmare” Velazquez dropped Travis “The Animal” Thompson twice en route to a 66-second KO victory for the Puerto Rican-born Springhill, FL fighter. Velazquez is now 4-4 in the Squared Circle. Thompson, who entered fight night as the No. 5 contender in the BKFC bantamweight division, falls to 5-6 with the loss.
Saginaw, MI’s Jay “Action” Jackson lived up to his nickname with a big win at the expense of Idrees “Grumpy Bear” Wasi of Sacramento, CA in the light-heavyweight division. The doctor called a halt to the bout at the conclusion of the third round. With the victory, Jackson improves to 4-3 in the Squared Circle, while Wasi drops to 1-3.
Jessica “The Black Widow” Borga of Lakeland, FL smashed her way to 2-0 in the Squared Circle with a first-round KO over German-born Denver product Katharina “The German Gypsy” Lehner in their women’s featherweight bout. Time of the stoppage was 41 seconds into the first round. Lehner is now 0-1.
Miami’s Leonel “Lionheart” Carerra upped his BKFC record to 1-1 with a TKO against Mike Heckert of St. Petersburg in middleweight action. The ringside doctor stopped the bout at the conclusion of the second round due to Heckert’s eye injury.
Angel “OG” Hernandez made history Friday as the Brandon, FL product notched an eight-second KO over Trinidad, TX’s Rayne “The Guy on the Couch” Wells in their battle of debuting lightweights. The lightning-fast finish is good for the third fastest stoppage victory in BKFC history.
In the first fight of the night, Quentin “GQ” Gaskins of St. Petersburg, FL was victorious in his BKFC debut, scoring a first-round TKO over Lancaster, PA’s Zach “Lil Mac” Pannell. Their back-and-forth featherweight battle was called to a stop by the ringside physician at the conclusion of the first round. Pannell’s record fell to 1-1 with the loss.
BKFC Fight Night Clearwater Results
Mike Richman def. Erick Lozano via TKO in Round 5 (0:53)
Elvin Brito def. Ja’Far Fortt via TKO in Round 1 (0:40)
Tyler Randall def. JR Ridge via Split Decision (49-46, 47-48, 48-47)
Abdiel Velazquez def. Travis Thompson via KO in Round 1 (1:03)
Jay Jackson def. Idrees Wasi via TKO (doctor stoppage) in Round 3 (2:00)
Jessica Borga def. Katharina Lehner via KO in Round 1 (0:41)
Leonel Carerra def. Mike Heckert via TKO (doctor stoppage) in Round 2 (2:00)
Angel Hernandez def. Rayne Wells via KO in Round 1 (0:08)
Quentin Gaskins def. Zach Pannell via TKO (doctor stoppage) in Round 1 (2:00)
