PHOTOS / RESULTS: BKFC MAKES EPIC FIRST IMPRESSION AT SOLD-OUT BULGARIAN DEBUT!
Click Here for BKFC-54 Bulgaria Fight Night Photos / BKFC
Sofia, Bulgaria (November 17, 2023) Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC), The World’s Fastest Growing Combat Sports Promotion, broke new ground on Friday, Nov. 17 debuting in Bulgaria with the action-packed BKFC-54 event at the sold-out Arena Sofia in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Twelve different nationalities were represented in the squared circle and a number of exciting new prospects emerged with impressive victories. The event was broadcast live globally on the BKFC App, FITE+ and Fubo Sports.
In the BKFC-54 main event, Bulgarian MMA legend Rosen Dimitrov turned heads in his highly anticipated bare-knuckle fighting debut with a second-round knockout victory over fellow Bulgarian Todor Zhelyazkov.
Dimitrov dropped Zhelyazkov with a left hook – the first knockdown of the fight – which left Zhelyazkov unable to continue. Time of the stoppage was 1:40 of the second round.
In the co-headliner, Bulgaria’s Georgi Valentinov overcame a fifth-round point deduction for excessive grappling to defeat Bojan Kosednar of Slovenia in their middleweight matchup. Valentinov knocked down his opponent once in the first round, which paved the way for the unanimous decision victory.
In the BKFC-54 feature fight, Bulgarian Vladislav Kanchev needed just 54 seconds to defeat Kazakhstan’s Ilyas Sadykov via knockout in their lightning-fast middleweight showdown.
In one of the most unique fights in BKFC history, Bulgaria’s Kaloyan Kolev was declared the winner of his heavyweight bout with Lebanon’s Amer Abdulnabi after Abdulnabi was forced to retire due to an equipment malfunction. Abdulnabi’s faulty right shoe was the culprit, which led to his loss just 57 seconds into the first round.
Bulgaria’s Marian Dimitrov scored one knockdown in his unanimous decision victory over Poland’s Jedrzej Durski in the middleweight division.
Mahmoud Ahmed and Forlin Lupu combined to register seven knockdowns in their action-packed, five-round bantamweight matchup. The Egyptian Ahmed accounted for five of those knockdowns – which earned him the unanimous decision victory – while the Bulgarian Lupu scored two knockdowns in the losing effort.
Bulgaria’s Veselin Ivanov defeated Italy’s Marco Guistarini via third-round knockout in their featherweight matchup. Time of the stoppage, which followed the first knockdown of the fight, was 1:08.
Bulgarian Mladen Iliev knocked down Yunus Batan of Turkey three times over three rounds enroute to a technical knockout victory in their middleweight showdown. The bout was stopped 40 seconds into round three.
To kick off the highly anticipated BKFC-54 main card, France’s Steve Pasche was declared the winner via doctor stoppage in his heavyweight bout with Turkey’s Mehmet Ozer when Ozer tore his bicep and couldn’t continue in the first round. Time of the stoppage was 1:30.
In a battle of evenly matched Bulgarian lightweights, Angel Petkov defeated Nikola Arsov via split decision in the final, back-and-forth bout of the BKFC-54 prelims.
Brazilian Felipe Maia picked himself up off the canvas once and dropped Bulgaria’s Martin Stoichkov three times in their lightweight bout, paving the way for a third-round knockout in their preliminary card matchup. Time of the stoppage was 1:55.
Slovakia’s Tomas Vojtela kicked off the BKFC-54 preliminary card with a third-round technical knockout victory over Bulgaria’s Zdravko Dimitrov in featherweight action. The fight was stopped by the ringside doctor due to an eye injury 30 seconds into round three.
BKFC-54 Main Card Results
Rosen Dimitrov def. Todor Zhelyazkov via KO in Round 2 (1:40)
Georgi Valentinov def. Bojan Kosednar via Unanimous Decision (scores not read)
Vladislav Kanchev def. Ilyas Sadykov via KO in Round 1 (0:54)
Kaloyan Kolev def. Amer Abdulnabi via TKO (fighter retirement due to equipment malfunction) in Round 1 (0:57)
Marian Dimitrov def. Jedrzej Durski via Unanimous Decision (scores not read)
Mahmoud Ahmed def. Forlin Lupu via Unanimous Decision (scores not read)
Veselin Ivanov def. Marco Guistarini via KO in Round 3 (1:08)
Mladen Iliev def. Yunus Batan via TKO in Round 3 (0:40)
Steve Pasche def. Mehmet Ozer via TKO (doctor stoppage) in Round 1 (1:30)
BKFC-54 Preliminary Card Results
Angel Petkov def. Nikola Arsov via Split Decision (scores not read)
Felipe Maia def. Martin Stoichkov via KO in Round 2 (1:55)
Tomas Vojtela def. Zdravko Dimitrov via TKO (doctor stoppage) in Round 3 (0:30)
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Media Contact/Credentials
Bernie Bahrmasel
Double B Sports
Phone: + 1 773 592-2986
Email: Bernie@BKFC.com
Twitter: @BernieBahrmasel
About Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC)
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is the first promotion allowed to hold a legal, sanctioned, and regulated bare knuckle event in the United States since 1889. Based in Philadelphia, and headed by President and former professional boxer David Feldman, BKFC is dedicated to preserving the historical legacy of bare knuckle fighting, while utilizing a specifically created rule set that emphasizes fighter safety. BKFC holds all of its bouts in a revolutionary circular four-rope ring, designed to encourage fast-paced and exciting bouts. The patented BKFC “Squared Circle” contains scratch lines, based on the Broughton Rules which governed bare knuckle fighting in the 19th century, and which requires fighters to “Toe the Line”: start every round face to face, and just inches apart.
In BKFC, only those fighters who are established professionals in boxing, MMA, kickboxing, or Muay Thai are allowed to compete. The referees and judges are required to have extensive professional combat sports experience. All fights are held under the auspices and control of an Athletic Commission. Unlike other fighting organizations and combat sports internationally which claim to be “bare knuckle”, but require wraps, tape, and gauze; BKFC is true to its word as fighters are not allowed to wrap their hands to within one inch of the knuckle. This makes BKFC unquestionably the truest form of bare knuckle fighting. BKFC is dedicated to not just creating the safest, most exciting, and highest-level bare-knuckle fighting organization in the world, it’s also leading the way for a new fully recognized professional combat sport. BKFC is truly the sport of the future, which fully respects its remarkable past.
