Former UFC fighter Ben Rothwell is ready to take the next step in his career.
After 13 years with the UFC, heavyweight Ben Rothwell announced not long ago that he will be making the transition over to bare-knuckle fighting. Rothwell signed with BKFC back in April after being asked to be released from the UFC.
At the time of the announcement, the news came as a bit of a surprise as Rothwell was linked to a fight with Alexander Gustafsson at the time. He was coming off a loss, but not an all-around bad record as he was 3-2 in his last five bouts. Despite a relatively good matchup with Gustafsson, Rothwell made his decision to pursue different opportunities.
“We just asked for our release, and they said there was a period going back and forth,” Rothwell told MMA Fighting at the time. “I think it caught them off surprise if anything. I’ve been with them for 13 years. So they granted it to us and they didn’t have to. So I have nothing bad to say. I’ve had a good 13 years being a professional fighter, making my living off of fighting, getting to do something I love and they granted it to us.”
Ben Rothwell will be returning to bare-knuckle fighting which he did during his early days
Now Rothwell is looking to make his debut in BKFC this October. According to MMA Fighting, Rothwell’s BKFC promotional debut will take place at BKFC 30 against Bobo O’Bannon. Rothwell is the latest on a long list of former UFC fighters who have made their way over to bare-knuckle fighting. Many have found success and others have simply found financial bliss. Rothwell who is 40 years old wants to be a part of this fast-growing combat sport.
“BKFC came with the best offer, made me very excited,” he said. “I believe that it’s the place for me because I was doing BKFC long before MMA. It’s something that’s part of my life, something my great grandfather was doing, probably not legally, but had a history of it. It’s something that’s in my blood.”
BKFC 30 will be headlined by a cruiserweight title fight between Lorenzo Hunt and Quentin Henry in the Fant Ewing Coliseum in Monroe, La.
