It was raucous, rowdy, and historic belts were on the line. Nine of 11 bouts, which included two world-title contests, ended in knockouts. Bare Knuckle Boxing (known as BKB) has gone from being the dark underbelly of the fighting scene to a legitimate sport with the sell-out event at Vale Sports Centre in Cardiff on Saturday night being the organisation’s 40th event. Not any more, however, insists BKB, who hold the moniker of being the oldest bare-knuckle boxing league, harking back to the Victorian-era world champion John L Sullivan. Nonetheless, it is still blood and guts and fury with a 90 per cent stoppage ratio in the smallest combat arena in the world – a triangular ‘Trigon’ – and unrelenting action.

Source: The Times April 21, 2025 18:04 UTC