- Bec Rodriguez is happy to have become a key figure in the growth of women’s division at BKFC
- “Rowdy” is also proud to be one of the first female fighters to enter OnlyFans
Bec Rodriguez, formerly Bec Rawlings, has found a new lease on life at Bare-Knuckle Fighting Championshio (BKFC) after parting ways with the UFC in 2018. She’s proud of what she has accomplished in the company and at the same time, she also doesn’t regret one bit of her decision to start her OnlyFans page.
A BKFC pioneer
It has been four years since Rodriguez made her BKFC debut. She was one of the first female fighters in the promotion and after being unbeaten in three fights, “Rowdy” became a champion. However she left for Bellator the following year but is now ready to make her BKFC return.
Ahead of her comeback, Rodriguez admitted that she feels proud to have paved the way for other female fighters at BKFC, which has eventually signed the likes of Paige VanZant as its women’s division evolved.
“It’s definitely cool to see the promotion grow,” Rawlings told MMA Fighting. “It’s definitely cool to see. I know there’s been some slight comments from Britain [Hart] saying I left and I’ve come back after they’ve done all the hard work, and it’s been getting under my skin. It’s like b****, I’m the reason you’re signed. I’m the reason the girls have the biggest division right now.
“I took the gamble and had the first fight,” she continued. “No one knew what we were walking in on when I first signed with bare-knuckle. I had no idea what was going to happen with the promotion so I think she needs to remember that I was the first, I was the one that took the gamble. Respect where it’s due, I think. I’m definitely excited to see the changes in the promotion, there’s bigger names, more hype and I’m definitely excited.”
“I’m happy I could be a part of that history,” she added. “It’s only going to get bigger from here. It’s really cool to see the girl’s division really take off. That’s the main attraction. Everyone’s hyped and pumped about our division and that’s really f****** cool to see in combat sports… Sometimes the girls get forgotten about, especially in boxing. So things are changing and it’s cool to be a part of it.”
Nothing wrong with OnlyFans
After just two fights under the Bellator banner, Rodriguez was derailed as the pandemic hit the promotion. She found herself in a financial crisis and was prompted to start her OnlyFans page, becoming one of the first female fighters to have done it at the time.
For two straight years, OnlyFans helped Rodriguez cope with the financial blow caused by the pandemic and she’s happy that more and more of her peers have followed suit since then.
“I’m not afraid to take risks,” she said. “I think a lot of people were a little bit scared to jump over to OnlyFans out of fear of backlash. Like, ‘Ooh are you doing porn? Are you a porn star?’ They were kind of scared of that, the stigma that OnlyFans had behind it. I pride myself on not giving a f*** what other people think. So I take the gamble and it’s paid off.
“Without my OnlyFans right now without being able to fight for two years, I would be homeless. It was worth the risk. It was worth the gamble. I’m never going to sit back and not do things out of fear of what people might think of me. Cause I’ve figured out people are going to hate regardless. They’re going to find a reason to hate if they’re going to hate. I don’t care anymore. I’m going to do me and hope that it pays off.”
“I don’t understand the stigma behind it or why people care,” she said. “It’s almost like when they judge you for being a fighter cause they would never have the balls to do it themselves. I think that’s where a lot of the hate comes from. It’s because they’re actually jealous that you don’t care and you’re willing to take a risk, to get the biscuit. Risk it for the biscuit.”
Rodriguez is set to make her return at BKFC 26 in a rematch with Britain Hart and she is pumped up to finally end her two-year hiatus.
