Derek Perez rose to the occasion in his Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship debut at KnuckleMania 3 in February.
KnuckleMania is always one of the biggest events on the BKFC calendar, and this year’s offering was no exception. The star-studded showcase event featured Lorenzo Hunt against Mike Richman in the Main Event, while former world champion boxer Austin Trout and MMA legend Diego Sanchez made their bare knuckle fighting debuts in the Co-Main Event. KnuckleMania 3 also featured BKFC 48 headliner John Dodson, former BKFC champ Jarod Grant and the highly anticipated BKFC debut of Greg Hardy.
Perez could be forgiven if he let the stars and bright lights get to him in his Squared Circle debut, but that wasn’t the case.
“It was just another day at the office for me,” he says. “I was prepared for anything.”
The nonchalant Perez returns to action once again in Albuquerque, NM at BKFC 48 on Aug. 11, when he battles Keith Richardson (2-0, 1 KO) in bantamweight action, LIVE on The BKFC App.
Perez sees a BKFC belt around his waist within the next 12 months, and he knows he has to beat Richardson for those visions to manifest.
“This is the biggest fight of my career, so this will be the biggest victory of my career,” he says. “After this, we’re looking to be in title contention, and there will be no stopping us then.”
