BKFC Founder and President David Feldman teases the “biggest tournament in combat sports history.”
While making an appearance on MMAToday, hosted by former UFC fighter Din Thomas and Alan Jouban, BKFC Founder and President David Feldman dropped a Texas-sized nugget of information. Although he has been teasing the "biggest tournament in combat sports history" for a few weeks, minimal details were available up until yesterday when everything changed.
Feldman: “I’m about three weeks out from announcing this but I’m going to announce the biggest tournament in combat sport history, with the largest prize money that’s ever been on a tournament. It’s going to be a 25 million dollar prize. We’ll be in the search for someone really special.”
$25 million. Unbelievable. While that’s a staggering amount of money, what I found particularly interesting was the mention of a “search.” This implies that the tournament will not only feature homegrown BKFC talent, but also free agents or even contracted fighters seeking a release from another promotion to compete in this legendary event.
Feldman went on to explain that the plan is to sift through more than 1,000 applicants, narrowing it down to 24 names. From those, eight will emerge as the final participants. He also clarified that this won't be a one-night event, but will be spread out over 11 months.
One theory I have is that we could see an “Ultimate Fighter”-esque scenario, where the 24 fighters Feldman mentioned will compete in some form of exhibition competition. From there, the eight remaining competitors will fight on official BKFC cards to determine the winner.
As a fan first and a media member second, I can’t wait to see the action this spectacle will bring. Look at The Ultimate Fighter, where the grand prize is a "six-figure contract" with the UFC, or the PFL season, where the top prize is a $1 million check. This potential $25 million prize blows both of those out of the water. With the stakes raised, we can expect the athletes to push themselves to the absolute limit.
This massive grand prize is unlike anything we've seen in combat sports, and it's clear that BKFC is looking to take things to the next level. With fighters from all backgrounds potentially entering the tournament, it will be interesting to see who the eight men will be, and of course the one man who leaves $25 Million richer. One thing's for sure, this is going to be an event no one will want to miss.
Top Photo Courtesy of BKFC.
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