Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship is set to fill Hard Rock Live in Hollywood, Florida on September 11, 2026, with a card that doubles as the public launch of a documentary-fueled tournament promising a $20 million prize pool. The promotion isn't just recruiting its usual roster of professional brawlers for the new competition — it's opening the door to firefighters, tradesmen, mechanics and other everyday strongmen willing to step into a bare-knuckle ring for a shot at that eight-figure purse.
According to WSVN, the tournament, dubbed "World's Baddest Man," will stream as a documentary competition series on FOX Nation, hosted by BKFC co-owner Conor McGregor. An announcer pitching the tournament put it plainly: "Are you the world's baddest man? Earn your place in the toughest tournament on the planet."
BKFC 93 Headlines Hard Rock Live's September Card
The event carries the official designation BKFC 93 and features an ironweight bout between Esteban "Mohawk" Rodriguez and Stephen "Tomahawk" Townsel, according to Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Hollywood. Tickets for the card start at $55.
The fights unfold at Hard Rock Live, 1 Seminole Way in Davie, Florida — a 7,000-seat clamshell-style theater built on tribal land under the jurisdiction of the Seminole Tribe of Florida, as Hoodline previously reported.
A $20 Million Chase Open to Everyday Tough Guys
The prize pool is structured so fighters earn compensation throughout each round of the tournament, culminating in a live championship finale where the final eight competitors split what's left of the pool, according to Strength Register. The outlet notes the purse ranks among the largest total prize pools in modern combat sports history.
Non-professional athletes weighing between 84 kilograms (185 pounds) and 125 kilograms (275 pounds) can try out for a spot in the tournament, with that same report indicating initial auditions are set for Manchester, England in September 2026, followed by additional stops in Serbia and Australia in October 2026.
McGregor's Ownership Stake and the FOX Nation Deal
FOX Nation announced the partnership with BKFC and McGregor on July 14, 2026, unveiling "World's Baddest Man" as a serialized documentary competition produced by Kiss Fly Productions, according to FOX News Media. The series is scheduled to premiere in summer 2027.
McGregor's role traces back to April 2024, when he acquired a part-ownership stake in BKFC through his company, McGregor Sports & Entertainment, joining majority shareholder Triller, as reported by Insider Sport. McGregor had first attended a live BKFC event in April 2023.
South Florida's Bare-Knuckle Track Record
Hard Rock Live has become something of a second home for BKFC, hosting 15 live combat cards for the promotion as of June 2026, including previous BKFC Fight Night Hollywood shows, per BKFC. Founder David Feldman has noted the venue has produced a string of sold-out events since the promotion launched.
Florida was among the first states to legalize the sport, with the Florida State Athletic Commission approving and licensing BKFC events back in May 2019, according to Forbes. Commission officials at the time approved custom wrist-wrapped gloves that leave the knuckles exposed while still protecting fighters' wrists.
From a Philadelphia Debut to Reality-TV Ambitions
BKFC was founded in Philadelphia in 2018 by President David Feldman, making it the first sanctioned bare-knuckle boxing promotion to hold legal events in the United States since 1889, according to BKFC. That marks a 129-year stretch during which bare-knuckle fighting went unsanctioned by any U.S. state athletic commission.
The South Florida bare-knuckle scene hasn't been without controversy: in May 2025, BKFC-affiliated fighter Peter Alexander Peraza was arrested in Miami on burglary and assault charges after scaling down seven stories of apartment balconies to evade police, an incident that, according to Hoodline, stemmed from an extortion investigation in downtown Miami. Fans hoping to try out for "World's Baddest Man" or attend the Hollywood card can find more information at bkfc.com/wbm, per the station's report.
