The main event of BKFC 62 is a perfect picture on what BKFC is all about!
The final press conference prior to BKFC 62 oscillated between two distinct tones. One of gratitude and happiness from promoter David Feldman, and one of uncomfortable animosity between the night’s headlining fighters Kai Stewart and Bryan Duran.
BKFC as a company has enjoyed quite a run of success and publicity over the last two months. Its KnuckleMania IV event in Los Angeles broke into the sought-after California market, and showcased all of its star power, including Mike Perry, Ben Rothwell, and even another cameo appearance from influencer Bryce Hall. The night also marked the unveiling of Conor McGregor as part-owner in the company, which set off a wave of mainstream publicity for a company that once struggled for legality, let alone legitimacy. Feldman himself was profiled in Rolling Stone, and weeks later, Perry, his star fighter, signed on to face Jake Paul in a gloved boxing match, which put the letters BKFC in mainstream print internationally.
A lot of the newfound attention on the company has, frankly, come due to the involvement of or affiliation with big names that were built elsewhere. That’s not a knock on the company, in fact, it’s something Feldman readily acknowledges. But it’s perhaps because of that reality that Feldman is evidently particularly proud of the BKFC 62 card, one that rides on the shoulders of almost exclusively in-house talent.
“We've had some unbelievable moments in BKFC. This event here on Friday, I'm almost emotional because these are home grown BKFC guys,” said Feldman, visibly choking back tears. “All these guys have come up through the ranks of BKFC, and now they're headlining the highest grossing ticket sales at the Hard Rock. Unbelievable, man. I say it all the time, really, truly, I love these guys. I do. If they need anything, I'm there. Why? Because they go out there and they fucking bleed for me, for you, and for the fans.”
The success of BKFC 62, and in particular Stewart vs. Duran as a promotion, is a significant moment in the company’s history. It’s evidence that although new eyeballs are certainly drawn to the company when ex-UFC stars and professional boxers moonlight in the bare knuckle space, some of those viewers are obviously also sticking around. In terms of longevity and sustainability, basing a company’s success on the pool of resources that is the faded or otherwise curious crop of recognizable fighters from other disciplines would ultimately be a losing battle. In the case of Stewart and Duran however, they entered the company without fame built elsewhere. Their fame and popularity has been cultivated entirely within the company, and their reputations as fighters are entirely based on their success as bare knuckle boxers, not success elsewhere that breeds curiosity about how they may fare sans gloves.
Part of the reason Stewart and Duran have broken out the way they have is because they know how to promote, even if the banter has become aggressive and uncomfortable at times.
That trash talk continued on Wednesday, with the themes staying largely the same as they have throughout the buildup. Stewart played the cocky savant, dismissing Duran completely, while Duran played the hostile antagonist.
“I'm here to run Hollywood, I'm here to take this belt back home to Montana. This guy isn't gonna do nothing to me. I took down BKFC's poster child in Howard Davis and I made it look easy, and the same shit is gonna happen against Bryan Duran on Friday night,” said Stewart.
“I give him his flowers. I don't take anything away from him, that's the difference between me and him,” said Duran. “The thing is, he thinks he's fighting something he's been in there with, something he's seen before. The difference is, he's been in there with athletes. I'm a killer. It's a whole different ballgame. It's not a sport. They put that so we can make money. But it's not a sport.”
Things got more and more heated until Duran went the direction Adrien Broner went against Blair Cobbs and threatened out-of-the-ring violence.
"I got calls from everyone at BKFC saving you from getting touched,” said Duran. “You know what would happen if I made a call?"
Stewart and Duran are made-for-TV characters with fascinating backstories that the company is able to lean on. Stewart’s debut in the sport as an active NCAA wrestler is something that could not have occurred in a pre-NIL era in collegiate sports without Stewart likely losing his eligibility. But Stewart isn’t just a prodigious athlete who naturally took to the sport of bare knuckle. He also entered the world of professional sports with a millennial wit and understanding of trolling and promotion and how those two go hand in hand. Whatever Stewart’s actual personality is, the one he puts on in media opportunities is the perfect mix of dismissive arrogance that plays well on social media. Combine that with the handlebar moustache and you have the ideal modern bare knuckle fighter.
Duran represents a very different side of the sport, a man fighting his way out of circumstances. He’s not the college-educated, polished star. He’s edgy, he openly discusses affiliation with alleged criminals, and his manner of speech ups the ante of competition to a life-and-death struggle. Duran once dreamt of being a baseball player like his early hero Jose Canseco, but followed his father’s passion for fighting and held onto it as he journeyed from Cuba to the Miami region where he’s now beloved.
Stewart and Duran represent the line that BKFC is toeing from a marketing perspective. Stewart is the legitimate athlete, the clean-cut college kid beating his opponents with sheer endurance and athleticism. Duran is the roughneck brawler with a hint of danger, winning fights with raw knockout power. The two of them are the embodiments of the mix that make up the BKFC recipe: A spicy, subversive, counter-culture stew mixed with familiar, palatable ingredients.
It's one that pairs well with the new BKFC coffee that Feldman touted as “one of the best coffees in the world,” as bags of the product sat on the dais in front of all of the card’s key fighters.
Photo courtesy: BKFC
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