BKFC 77 – A Bare Knuckle Battle in Birmingham

On June 28th BKFC makes its spectacular return to the UK with a fight card that no true fan of the sport will want to miss.

The stage is BP Pulse in Birmingham, England. The stakes will be as high as ever, with crowd favorites fighting for a chance at glory. BKFC 77 will put some of the UK's best, most skilled and most intense fighters on full display, while also showcasing international talent in a thrilling lineup. Fans are in store for quite a night. Witness Connor Tierney put his BKFC UK Welterweight title on the line against Danny Christie; Marley Churcher will clash head on with returning fan favorite Anthony Holmes; and we'll also get to see James Lilley take center stage. All this and much more will be available right here on TrillerTV! Now let's take a closer look at some of the truly exciting matches on the card.

Connor Tierney vs Danny Christie - The Main Event

This is most definitely a fight any fan of bare knuckle will be thrilled to watch! Connor Tierney makes his first title defense of the BKFC UK Welterweight Championship after winning it in a fierce battle against Jonny Graham at BKFC 64 in August last year. However, this will not be an easy task. Ahead of him is the one and only Danny Christie. A former champion, Christie is known for being very tough and able to adapt to pressure. His last opponent was the BKFC P4P king – David Mundell, at the promotion's first ever event on DAZN and while he did not come up victorious, nobody can blame Christie for falling to the undisputed best in the sport. Another notch in Danny's belt is his spectacular win over super tough, fan favorite and former champion Anthony Holmes, whom Christie dethroned at BKFC 40. We'll discuss Holmes later, as he will also be fighting at BKFC 77.

While Christie is a very formidable challenger, reigning champion Connor Tierney is not someone to be taken lightly. While his title win at BKFC 64 is big, he has also proven in his previous bouts to be a very dangerous fighter, who can turn the tables on anybody in the blink of an eye. His KO victory over Jeremiah Riggs at BKFC Fight Night: New York 2 in 2022 is an absolute stunner. The finish would fit on any highlight reel of the most devastating knockouts in any combat sport. Tierney's experience against an extensive list of fan favorites from the UK scene is also an advantage. Having fought Rico Franco in only his second bare knuckle match, Connor would later go on to have two back-to-back wins against the very tough James Connelly. Tierney even headlined BKFC 37 in London against bare knuckle fan favorite Jake Lindsey, and although Connor would be on the losing end of that fight, he still put on a very impressive performance.

All that being said, Tierney vs Christie is an interesting matchup across the board. They have an almost identical reach, but Connor is taller and feels good fighting at a distance. That doesn't necessarily mean that he'll be able to outbox Danny. Christie is very versatile with his hands – adaptable and powerful. You cannot let him hit you, and yet stopping him is a task in itself. A powerhouse with technique and versatility, Danny is a truly great fighter. However, what Tierney brings is a tall fighter with a strong work ethic, and if he's able to push with volume, while not letting Christie touch him, we just might see Connor defend his belt. That is, if he can survive Danny's vicious onslaught and experience edge.

Their match is shaping up to be quite the main event. It will be preceded by an outstanding clash at light heavyweight between a debuting Jamie Cox and the experienced Charles Wasserman. But before that, we get to witness something special.

The Return of Anthony Holmes

Anthony Holmes is a true warrior and fan favorite. The bare knuckle fighting audience and BKFC fans in general know him for having the heart of a lion and the resolve to push through any adversity. There is a reason we mentioned him in the beginning of this piece, a good reason. He will be making his return to the promotion and fighting his first match in 2025, and it's all going down at BKFC 77. Holmes will be fighting an experienced bare knuckle fighter in Marley Churcher, known for his battle with James Connelly – a common foe with Connor Tierney, as well as his very rough and intense fight with veteran and bare knuckle great Jimmy Sweeney.

Holmes has a challenging task ahead of him upon his return, and fans should be excited for this match. Having held titles in multiple bare knuckle organizations, Anthony is a proper veteran with an exciting style. His losses to Danny Christie and Bart Król did offset his career trajectory a bit, but he is back in the winning column by stopping Charles Wasserman, whom we also mentioned earlier, in Round 2.

Holmes is tough. He fights well in the pocket, while also being very versatile with his movement and ring control. A win over someone as tough and as persistent as Marley Churcher might put him in a great position for a title contention.

And speaking of returns, another great fighter from the UK will be making his long anticipated comeback.

James Lilley – Fighting Back

James Lilley has been a mainstay, not only on the UK bare knuckle scene but in BKFC worldwide. Having made quick work of tough bare knuckle veteran Scott McHugh, Lilley was scheduled to debut in BKFC in 2022 against Adam Pellerano – at the time a dangerous contender on a two-fight winning streak. James made a statement by stopping him in the very first round. From there his career would only go upward, defeating the very tough Tyler Goodjohn and powerhouse veteran Bobby Taylor.

Lilley then had a title fight lined up against the P4P king at the time – Luis Palomino. The match was a long one and while James lost, everyone saw that he fought with heart. Unfortunately for him, his next two matchups would not go his way either. At BKFC 60 he faced off against Franco Tenaglia for the vacant BKFC European lightweight title. It was the main event of the evening and he lost by a majority decision. Interestingly, their co-main event showed Danny Christie knocking out David Round in devastating fashion in the first round. Lilley's next opponent was combat sports veteran Felipe Maia, who handed James another loss. However, as we have seen recently, resurgences and upsets are the name of the game in BKFC, and it's time for James Lilley to return to his former glory.

With his strong skillset, good counterpunching, and willingness to engage across the board, James Lilley is someone to be respected and never counted out.

BKFC 77 – A Do Not Miss Event

With such a strong main event and so many fan favorites, BKFC 77 is shaping up to be a great treat for the fans in Birmingham, but also for the entire bare knuckle audience.

So tune in to TrillerTV to watch all the fights live. A lot of the fighters on the card have mutual history and are within arm's reach of a title contention. The end results of this event will shape the UK bare knuckle scene for months to come, and will reshuffle the current order in each affected weight class.

Who will come out victorious – Connor Tierney or Danny Christie? Will Anthony Holmes defeat Marley Churcher or will his return get spoiled? Will Jamie Cox debut with a bang or is Charles Wasserman adding another win to his record? And what does the future hold for James Lilley? All of this and much, much more will be answered live from BKFC 77. You don't want to miss a single minute. And you don't have to, because it's all right here on TrillerTV!

An opinion piece by Ivan Spasov
Editor-In-Chief at TrillerTV