Todd Duffee gets another crack at “Big” Ben Rothwell at BKFC KnuckleMania 4 later this month, after the pair of UFC alums’ original booking in December fell through.
Oddly enough, however, Duffee, who has struggled to compete in recent years due to health and circumstance, originally thought he was fighting someone else at the biggest bareknuckle card of 2024.
“To be very honest I thought I was fighting [Lorenzo] Hunt,” Duffee told Cageside Press in a recent exclusive interview. “My manager told me I was fighting Hunt, so I trained for Hunt for about a month, and then three weeks ago they let me know it was going to be Ben.”
Despite finally making his debut for a new promotion, and in a new sport, Duffee doesn’t expect to have many nerves. He’s a veteran of the game now, one who actually wishes the butterflies would fly just a little bit more.
“I hope to have as many nerves as possible. It’s ideal, realistically. Especially for five two minute rounds or six two minute rounds, however it works out. But no. I hope to be as nervous as I need to be.”
Having already trained for Rothwell once before, preparing for “Big” Ben has been a bit like studying for a familiar test. To some extent. “Is it like studying for a test? Yeah it really is, but every day is a new day, every fight is a new fight,” stated Duffee. “Ben’s a different guy than he was yesterday, I’m a different guy than I was.”
The winner of Ben Rothwell vs. Todd Duffee is widely expected to be in line for the next title shot. That’s not something Duffee, now 38, is focused on however. Even if his last action was a fight for the KSW heavyweight title, against Phil De Fries in 2023.
“I honestly don’t give a sh*t about titles, I think they’re kind of meaningless to be very honest with you,” exclaimed Duffee. “But of course I want to fight the best, so that is where the best is at so of course that’s what I’m after.”
“I’m more after names. Like I said I’m fighting the best guy in the division right now, that’s why I’m taking the fight, that’s why I pushed for this fight, so I’m excited about that. You want to chase titles if you’re chasing names, but I want guys who are the best, so that’s what I’m doing.”
Watch our full interview with BKFC KnuckleMania 4’s Todd Duffee above.
