Darren Till and Yoel Romero Headline BKFC 94 in Manchester on September 26
Two fan favorites from MMA's recent past collide bare-knuckle at the AO Arena on DAZN.
Darren Till and Yoel Romero are about to punch each other without gloves in Manchester, and honestly, that sentence sells itself.
BKFC 94 lands at the AO Arena on Saturday, September 26, streaming live on DAZN with a 2 p.m. ET start time. The main event pits Till against Romero at a 205-pound catchweight in what the promotion is billing as the biggest fight in BKFC history.
Till (18-5 in MMA, three professional boxing wins, 1-0 in BKFC) made his bare-knuckle debut earlier this year and looked comfortable enough to suggest this could be a viable second act. Romero (17-7 in MMA with 14 knockouts, 1-0 in BKFC) is 49 years old and still built like a comic book villain. The Cuban Olympic silver medalist in freestyle wrestling has never been knocked out across MMA and bare-knuckle competition, which makes the matchup genuinely fascinating.
The undercard features three title fights. David Mundell (10-2) challenges Jack Cullen (2-0) for the BKFC middleweight world title in the co-main event. Karl Thompson (4-1) meets Andy Thornton (1-0) for the BKFC UK cruiserweight title, and Gaz Corran (2-0) faces Mac Bygraves (2-0) for the BKFC UK middleweight title.
Manchester is Till's home turf, which adds a layer of atmosphere that could make this one of the more memorable fight nights of the year. Whether the product is high-level combat or pure spectacle depends on your perspective, but BKFC knows exactly what it is selling, and the audience is buying.
Darren Till and Yoel Romero bare-knuckle in Manchester. I do not need a sales pitch. Romero is 49, built like a superhero, and has never been knocked out in MMA or bare-knuckle. Till is at home, has real boxing wins, and looked comfortable in his BKFC debut. That is a legit main event for this format.
My lean is Till. Bare-knuckle rewards hand speed, accuracy and a sharp jab more than raw power, and Till is the better pure boxer. Romero's power is scary and one clean right hand changes everything, but at 49 the reaction time is not what it was. I expect Till to pick him apart and possibly open him up.
The undercard is fine, but nobody is buying DAZN for the UK middleweight title. They are buying for the two names on the poster, and BKFC knows it. Call it spectacle if you want. I will be watching.
KEEP TALKING FIGHTS.
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