BKFC 11 featured a super welterweight (155lb) title fight between Luis Palomino and Isaac Vallie-Flagg, in a bout originally expected to feature Jim Alers. With Alers out, it was Vallie-Flagg stepping up. 3-0 in his bare knuckle endeavors to that point, he wound up having a rough night. Palomino wasted no time, attacking Vallie-Flagg early and putting him away via TKO in under a minute.

That will likely set him up for the originally planned pairing with Alers somewhere down the line.

Full results from Friday’s card can be found blow. If you missed the action, catch the full video replay above.

BKFC 11: Palomino vs. Vallie-Flagg Results

Luis Palomino def. Isaac Vallie-Flagg by KO (punches), Round 1, 0:45 – for the BKFC super welterweight title
Dillon Cleckler def. Frank Tate by KO (punches), Round 3, 0:59
Elvin Brito def. Kaleb Harris by split decision (45-50, 48-47, 49-46)
Codie Shuffield def. Herbert Morgan by TKO (punches), Round 2, 1:30
Bobby Taylor def. Louis Hernandez by split decision (48-47, 49-46, 48-47)
Chris Sarro def. Victor Jones by KO (punch), Round 1, 1:50
Joseph Elmore def. Will Chope by KO (punches), Round 1, 0:52
Tee Cummins def. John McAllister by TKO (punch), Round 2, 0:42

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The fans are back in the building

The last few months have been a touch unpredictable for everyone. Therefore, BKFC had to deal with a fair bit of uncertainty. “We wanted to do a show. Had a show scheduled in March that didn’t happen. We planned a show actually at the beginning of May. People just looked at us a little funny. So we didn’t want to do anything that was going to upset people. We also wanted to be very conscious of everybody’s health and safety.”

There have been some hurdles ahead of this one for sure. Above all though, BKFC 11 is now just hours away.

“We thought there was going to be a lot of obstacles but it’s crazy. We’ve lost three fighters so far to COVID-19, or someone on their team tested with COVID,” Feldman said. “We have anther testing going on tomorrow morning with all the fighters. So fingers crossed we don’t lose anyone else. It’s been very, very difficult but at the same time very rewarding. We do get to put on an event right now for the fans.”

A key difference with this event as compared to some other returning promotions is that BKFC will actually have some fans in attendance.

“I believe we’re the first live sporting event in the United States with fans. I could be wrong with that but I think that we are,” proclaimed Feldman. “We don’t have full fans. We’re allowed to do 25 percent capacity. We’re keeping it around 15 percent. But it’s a big place and we’re still going to have a thousand people in attendance. It’s going to be really fun just to hear the atmosphere of the crowds.”

BKFC 11

Isaac Vallie Flagg vs. Luis Palomino for the inaugural 155lb title is the main event at BKFC 11. There are many reasons why this was a no brainer to top the marquee for Friday’s return show. The original plan, however, was to have Jim Alers headline the event.

“Isaac has always been on our radar. He’s a very good fighter. He’s 3-0 in bare-knuckle. He just wanted to get back in action. It just didn’t make a lot of sense with where we were and we really didn’t have an opportunity for him,” said Feldman. “We were absolutely looking at him to maybe fight the winner of this thing (prior to Alers dropping out)… He has an opportunity to fight for the inaugural 155lb championship. So I take my hat off to Isaac to take this fight on a lite over two weeks notice.”

BKFC Toe The Line

BKFC has plans to promote Toe The Line fight series to grow younger stars. Ideally, a monthly BKFC show will go down and probably three or four Toe The Line shows through the remainder of 2020. The promotion is ideally looking at doing 8 or 10 events by end of year. Feldman noted a past knock on BKFC from some is that they use more tenured, older fighters to draw. The plan is to grow fresh stars in a grassroots way with this new platform.

For instance, Dillon Cleckler vs. Frank Tate is a fight that is emblematic of BKFC’s efforts to promote new blood in the sport.

“That is my pick for fight of the night, Dillon Cleckler vs. Frank Tate. These guys are going to stand in the middle of the ring and bang it out. Really, it’s whoever connects first,” predicted Feldman. “Because although they’re both great MMA fighters, very good MMA fighters, fought the toughest in the world— but this is bare-knuckle. It’s a different thing when they get hit and I think they’re going to find that out… I think we do have a star in the making with Dillon Cleckler. We’ll see what happens.”

BKFC’s return

Codie Shuffield is one of the Mississippi native’s slated for the card and lack of local fanfare is not something he needs to worry about. “Codie did fight in Bellator. He’s a pro boxer. An MMA fighter. He’s like the mayor of this town, it’s crazy,” noted Feldman. “Everywhere he goes people are like ‘hey, Codie Shuffield. Codie Shuffield.’ So he’s got a good personality. Something we can really build.”

Elvin Brito vs. Kaleb Harris is the fight on the card that could generate that highlight reel stoppage. The gif or video that’s shared ad nauseum on the night of the event.

“They’re both owners of knockouts of the night. They’re both owners of viral one-punch knockout videos,” said Feldman. “It’s who hits who first is how I think it’s going to go…That’s who’s going to take control of this fight. But I’m really, really looking forward to that. I do see if Kaleb does win, I think Kaleb does have the star power quality with him.”

Future of BKFC

Despite the hiatus, the organization has been steadily making moves behind the scenes. “We have a lot of things coming. We have a huge, huge signing coming up. I think we’re going to take everyone by surprise. Probably announce that in the next week or two. It’s really going to move the needle for us.”

Shannon Briggs is among one of the big-name signees that BKFC has brought on in the last few months. Feldman was able to provide some level of clarity for what the organization has planned for Shannon the Cannon’s BKB debut.

“We talked about that earlier but that probably won’t happen until right around January or February,” he stated. “Think things are going to open up and we’d like to do that one in Miami. We have a partnership deal with the Hard Rock Stadium down there with the Super Bowl. They want us to host an event down there and we’re going to. I think that would be a great spot for him.”

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Isaac Vallie-Flagg’s Resurgence

Vallie-Flagg specifically recalls when he found out about this title fight opportunity. “It was exactly three weeks out to the day. We just got the call and I jumped at the opportunity. I feel bad for Alers and his camp and I hope everybody there’s healthy. But obviously, if you get a title shot, you’re not going to say no.”

Palomino is someone that Vallie-Flagg is more than familiar with, and he knows what he’s getting into on Friday night. “I was a fan of his when he did MMA and obviously he was in the 155lb tournament. So it was somebody who I watched. I’ve seen him fight as a fan before and tried to study him also. He’s good. He’s a very good fighter. He brings some tricky stuff to the table that I’m going to have to be aware of.”

This has all been quite the saga for Vallie-Flagg these last few years. His last MMA bout was in Summer 2016, there was a period of substance abuse issues and trouble with the law. However, Vallie-Flagg mounted a comeback and is now unbeaten in bare knuckle boxing through three fights, and is poised to fight for a championship.

“It’s the culmination of living right and putting my trust in some stuff,” he told us. “Really pushing some skills that I knew I had. That I really did not take advantage of and kind of messed up before. This last year and a half or two years of doing the bare-knuckle stuff has been a weird ride. But it’s been really fun. I’m excited to be here. I said after I beat Melvin that I want a belt this year. And this is my shot at it. It’s not like we didn’t expect it. It just came a little bit differently than we expected.”

BKFC 11

Vallie-Flagg’s bare-knuckle debut was with the infamous WBKFF, who did not pay him (as well as numerous other fighters on that card). He then transitioned to BKFC and it was a night and day difference.” David [Feldman] and all those guys have been leaps and bounds better obviously than the last guys. I’m glad I ended up where I did.”

Isaac Vallie-Flagg wasn’t able to work with his main coach ahead of this one. The COVID landscape has made things different this camp. He didn’t have as many people sparring in the training quarters. The mindset is still sharp though and Vallie-Flagg is locked in.

Flagg vs. Palomino

The Greco Roman skills from MMA have allowed for many mixed-martial artists to transition quite seamlessly into the BKFC ring. This is a characterization that Vallie-Flagg agrees with too.

“I think the ruleset definitely benefits somebody who likes to be in the clinch.  It’s not boxing, it’s not MMA, it’s kind of like a hybrid. I think the transition is there. A lot of guys like to grab. So it’s not pure boxing. You can’t just sit there and not grab. You can grab and dirty box. I think that’s one of the biggest things.”

Considering his efforts as a pugilist, it’s cool that Vallie-Flagg can support pacifism as well. Much like his buddy Clay Guida, Vallie-Flagg is a fan of The Big Lebowski and the film’s main hero The Dude. “I try to be like The Dude, for sure. Clay’s a good friend of mine. There’s a few of us that are Big Lebowski fans. Trying more and more to be like The Dude. Just kind of abide to whatever life has in front of me, you know?”

As a parting thought, Vallie-Flagg had this to say, “I’m just looking forward to Friday night. Getting the belt wrapped around my waist. That’s all, man.”

The Dude abides. And BKFC 11 goes down this Friday, July 24 Oxford, Mississippi.

The post Isaac Vallie-Flagg on BKFC 11 Title Fight: “It’s the Culmination of Living Right” appeared first on Cageside Press.

The David Feldman-led BKFC is setting a date for its return. The promotion hasn’t held an event since February where former UFC talent Hector Lombard was featured in the main event, however, that will soon change. Despite aiming to originally have a show April 11, then again looking to return on June 20, the date they’ve settled on is in July. July 24, to be exact, in South Florida. The most interesting part? BKFC is expecting to have fans in attendance, and tickets are going on sale soon according to the BKFC Twitter account.

Due to recent updates on Covid-19, BKFC 11 will now be held on JULY 24th in SOUTH FLORIDA with a LIVE ATTENDANCE! We appreciate all the fighters and fans who have stuck with us during the pandemic, we are working hard to bring BKFC back! #KnuckleUp👊 *tix & venue info coming soon pic.twitter.com/32AGnYEpkg

— Bare Knuckle FC (@bareknucklefc) June 12, 2020

It’s worth noting that the promotion also announced a show for the following month as well, as BKFC 12 is scheduled to go down August 21 from Wichita, Kansas. It’s unknown if that event will have any fans present, as the promotion only was able to confirm fans for the July 24 show. The choice is an interesting one, as some sporting promotions such as the UFC aren’t expecting to fans for the remainder of 2020. However, leagues including the NFL are expecting to have limited amounts of spectators in the coming months. It remains to be seen if BKFC will have limited fans in the venue, or what the seating situation will be like.

If the promotion was able to pull off fans at the July 24 event, it would be the first sporting event in the United States with fans since March 11, when the NBA and NCAA held their final basketball games of the season prior to its cancellation, or postponement in the NBA’s case. To find the last combat sports event stateside with fans beyond basketball, the last event would’ve been UFC 248 on March 8.

As of right now, there are currently no bouts announced for BKFC 11 in July or BKFC 12 in August.

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