Except This Time It’s Legal – Mississippi Is the Next State to Accept Bare Knuckle
On August 25th, professional bare knuckle boxing comes back home to Mississippi. The last major BKB world championship took place in Richburg, MS, between John L. Sullivan and Jake Kilrain in 1889. Another major championship bout took place between Sullivan and Paddy Ryan in Mississippi City in 1882. Both of these championships had been organized and sanctioned by the National Police Gazette.
Now, four miles from the site of the Sullivan/Ryan match, Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship 2 “A New Era” will take place at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi. At that event, a Police Gazette bare knuckle championship belt will once again be on the line as current world featherweight champ Bec Rawlings defends her belt against challenger Britain Hart.
It appears that those stung by the numerous promises and fizzles in years past have nothing to fear anymore. True bare knuckle boxing—no wraps or coverings of any kind on the knuckles—is now accepted and regulated on the state level in two states—Wyoming being the other—and promised events have been going off without a hitch since early June.
Two have already taken place in Wyoming, one by Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship and the other by Corey Williams. And this first one in Mississippi has been approved by the state athletic commission, as well as listed and promoted by the venue. We spoke with commission chairman Jon Lewis who told us all systems are go for the event using the same rules as Wyoming.
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship 2 “A New Era” will also feature Kendall Grove, Sam Shewmaker, Maurice Jackson, Arnold Adams, Joey Beltran, and more. Tickets can be purchased through Ticketmaster.com. Pay-per-view information will be coming soon.
Meanwhile, Corey Williams is planning Bare Knuckle Fight Club 5 for late August in Wyoming, featuring up-and-coming heavyweight sensation Tyler Canning. More information on that event as we receive it.
The new Police Gazette bare knuckle championship belt