PHILADELPHIA – Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship will make their long-awaited debut in Norfolk, Virginia with BKFC 39 set for Friday, March 24 at the renowned Scope Arena.
BKFC 39 is headlined by the BKFC bantamweight world championship between champion Reggie “EAZ-E” Barnett Jr. and undefeated challenger Gustaf “Forehead Forward” Cedermalm in addition to a women’s BKFC strawweight world championship between champion Britain Hart and challenger Jenny Savage in a highly anticipated rematch.
Tickets for BKFC 39, starting at $35, are now on-sale at BKFC.com and Ticketmaster.com.
BKFC 39 will also be broadcast internationally as part of the BKFC+ subscription for $7.99 per month on the new BKFC app, “The Best Value in Combat Sports.” BKFC 39 is sponsored by Only Fans, Crescent Tools, LIONS NOT SHEEP and Knockout Gummies.
“Norfolk and the state of Virginia has been at the top of our targeted destinations for live events,” said David Feldman, president of BKFC. “We’ve listened to the fans who have been traveling from that area to our events on the East Coast, and we’re anticipating a very large and passionate crowd of BKFC fans on March 24 at the Scope Arena.
“Reggie Barnett and Britain Hart have been with BKFC since the beginning almost five years ago and have grown with us in popularity as a company. Both of their world title defenses at BKFC 39 are explosive matchups that promise fireworks from the opening bell.”
A veteran of BKFC since the promotions’ first event in June 2008, the popular Barnett (8-2) of Chesapeake, Virginia won the BKFC interim bantamweight title by defeating Jarod Grant on July 23, 2022 at BKFC Fight Night Tampa 2. He followed that up in style with a shutout five-round unanimous decision over the undefeated Geane Herrera on November 5, 2022 at BKFC 32 in Orlando, Florida. Among Barnett’s other victories include wins over former boxing world champion DeMarcus Corley (BKFC 16), Abdiel Velazquez (BKFC 12), Matt Murphy (BKFC 10), Rusty Crowder (BKFC 5), Clay Burns (BKFC 2) and Travis Thompson (BKFC 1). Barnett’s only losses have come to former world champion and BKFC legend Johnny Bedford.
The Swedish born Cedermalm (1-0), now residing in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, burst onto the BKFC scene making huge news in his debut by defeating MMA veteran Alex Castro at BKFC Thailand 4 on December 9, 2022. Showing a world class bare-knuckle skill level, Cedermalm stopped Castro in the fourth round in the best performance at the event and among the best in the BKFC Thailand series. Prior to joining BKFC, Cedermalm compiled a record of 20-3 in regional bare-knuckle events.
Co-featured at BKFC 39, BKFC women’s strawweight world champion Hart (6-3), of Bedford, Virginia, will defend her title in a long-awaited rematch against Savage (3-1), of Clarksville, Tennessee. In an exciting fight at BKFC 19 on July 23, 2021, Hart stopped Savage at the end of three action-packed rounds.
Most recently Hart has dominated in two career-defining victories; a unanimous decision over arch-rival Bec Rawlings at BKFC 26 on June 24, 2022 and a decision win over Charisa Sigala at BKFC 29 on September 10, 2022. The victory over Rawlings was a revenge clash from her split decision loss to the Australian at BKFC 2.
Hart also holds victories over combat sports superstar Paige VanZant in an unforgettable fight at KnuckleMania 1 in Tampa, Florida and MMA veteran Pearl Gonzalez at BKFC 21 in Miami.
Since her first fight against Hart, Savage has racked up impressive wins over Delaney Bailey at BKFC Tampa on December 9, 2021 and Veronika Dmitriyeva at BKFC 29 on September 10, 2022.
Additional fights for BKFC 39 will be announced shortly.
