New year. More fights. Let’s take a look at BKFC’s first event of 2025!
After a month-long break following the holidays, BKFC looks to pick up where they left off with a competitive slate of fights on January 18th, at Pechanga Casino Resort. Headlined by Elvin Brito (6-5, 2 KO) vs. Evgeny Kurdanov (4-2), what the card lacks in name recognition hopefully makes up for it in excitement, which is usually the case when encountering unknown fighters.
However, the main event still holds weight as former BKFC Welterweight champion Elvin Brito looks to reintroduce himself to the championship picture when he takes on “The Sailor” Evgeny Kurdanov. Both fighters are coming off losses in their last bout, with Kurdanov losing after a two year hiatus. Although the division is currently being run by BK Nation’s pound for pound number one Austin Trout, welterweight is still home to a number of contenders awaiting their opportunity. A win for either Brito or Kurdanov would be huge in earning perhaps a number one contender fight later in the year.
Before those two square off, the co-main event features lightweights Robbie Peralta (3-2) vs. JorDan Christensen (3-5, 3 KO). No stranger to combat, the 19-9 MMA veteran Peralta looks to bounce back from a 2024 which saw him lose both of his fights, with his most recent being a six second KO loss to Ruben Warr. Christensen didn’t fare much better going 1-2 in his campaign. In a division full of hungry title hopefuls, to go along with a newly crowned champ in Franco Tenaglia, it’ll take a massive performance for one of these two combatants to set themselves apart.
The antepenultimate bout of the evening will be a battle of undefeated welterweights with Ryan Petersen (1-0, 1 KO) looking to take the 0 of Matthew Socholotiuk (2-0, 2 KO). Much like the main event, this bout is a chance for both fighters to throw their names in the hat of welterweight contenders champing at the bit for a crack at Trout’s gold. After all, one punch can change everything.
See full card below:
Welterweight Bout: Elvin Brito vs. Evgeny Kurdanov
Lightweight Bout: Robbie Peralta vs. JorDan Christensen
Welterweight Bout: Rodney Thomas vs. Art Driscoll
Lightweight Bout: Mike Andaya vs. Dan Godoy
Light Heavyweight Bout: Fernando Gonzalez vs. Erick Lozano
Heavyweight Bout: Caleb Avila vs. Tylor Sijohn
Heavyweight Bout: Iman Williams vs. Gabriel Mota
Middleweight Bout: Luis Villasenor vs. Jeremy Sauceda
Flyweight Bout: Alexander Gutierrez vs. Justyn Martinez
Top Photo Courtesy of BKFC
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