I have a lot of respect for Canadian boxing trainer and cutman Russ Anber.
As a fight fan of 40 years, I’m familiar with his work, often seeing Anber cornering Canada’s top boxers. He must be a heck of a cutman and trainer to work with so many top names.
But Russ Anber gets it wrong when it comes to bare knuckle.
Anber recently wrote a commentary for Boxing Scene where he describes bare knuckle boxing as “crude and archaic”. According to Anber, bare knuckle fighters “can’t truly defend themselves” because “there’s no opportunity to use a rope-a-dope-strategy, parry, or catch punches”.
I don’t know how many bare knuckle fights Russ has seen. But I do know I’ve seen a variety of defensive techniques in bare knuckle fighting matches.
Fighters routinely slip punches, block with forearms or elbows, parry with hands, or simply move away-just like in gloved boxing matches.
Fighters can also crash the line and grab a whizzer or half-Thai clinch to nullify their opponent’s offense before unloading with return fire.
World-class bare knuckle fighters need to be well-versed in grappling fundamentals-not just throwing and defending against punches like gloved boxers.
Anber also writes “professional boxers are trained and encouraged to defend themselves-a fundamental concept that becomes almost impossible in bare-knuckle.”
As mentioned above, while you may not be able to use gloves as a focal part of defence, fighters can and do block, parry, slip and use their legs like gloved boxers do.
It’s silly to think bare knuckle fighters aren’t trained to defend themselves. Many of them competed in boxing before testing their fighting skills sans gloves.
Anber is aware of former boxing champion Paulie Malignaggi’s recent match in BKB and James Degale’s ugly BKFC debut. But there are others.
Former world champion Austin Trout held the BKFC Welterweight Title. BKB Champion Harry Gigliotti, one of bare knuckle’s rising stars, fought 14 times professionally in gloved boxing. Boxing veteran Derrick Findley competes for BKFC, and unbeaten pro boxer Gustavo “The Cuban Assassin” Trujillo is the reigning BKB World Heavyweight Champion. Trujillo coincidentally, defends his BKB belt against former WBA champion Lucas Browne later this month.
Other top bare knucklers come from the world of MMA like Luis Palomino and Mike Perry. And let’s not talk about BKB Super Middleweight World Champion Lorawnt “Smash” Nelson.
Nelson is the consummate martial artist. He’s competed in Muay Thai, kickboxing, Lethwei, MMA, boxing and bare knuckle. To say he’s not trained to defend himself is absurd.
Defence may be more difficult without gloves on your hands but it’s not impossible. And as Anber notes, fights are shorter to provide more safety for the athletes.
Anber concedes “professional boxing may be more dangerous” because of the longer bouts and gloves, which allow boxers to strike each other in the head and body for longer with a lower risk of getting hurt or cut.
The fact is bare knuckle IS safer. A 2021 study shows bare knuckle fighters suffer less concussions and hand injuries than gloved boxers, although they do get cut more.
Professional Boxing is on the Ropes
Anber cites lightweight champion Shakur Stevenson as an example of the “skill strategy, defence and precision” that make gloved boxing “the sweet science”.
But the reality is many boxing fans find Stevenson a dull, safety-first fighter who relies on his reflexes.
And more and more fans are tuning out of boxing.
One-sided matchmaking, too many championships, dodgy decisions, twelve-round snoozefests, bufoonish influencers and too many pay-per-views have alienated many fans.
If it wasn’t for the Saudis, professional boxing would be in trouble outside the UK. ESPN has even stopped broadcasting boxing in the States.
Contrast pro boxing with modern bare knuckle.
In bare knuckle, the overwhelming majority of matches end by knockout or TKO. The shorter length of bouts means more action. And in bare knuckle, the best fight the best.
Let’s talk value for money.
Bare knuckle offers fans a more exciting and affordable alternative. BKB’s events are free in the UK via the Talksport Boxing YouTube channel and broadcast on cable in the U.S. via Vice Sports. BKFC has its own app that costs me less than £40 a year-less than a ticket to a club show at York Hall.
I won’t forget my first exposure to bare knuckle. After receiving a press release from publicist Bob Trieger, I ponied up the whopping $14.99 and tuned in for BYB 2.
It was amazing to see the skill and toughness of the athletes and nearly every match end by KO or TKO. It reminded me of the early days of MMA before the sport added more and more rules to go mainstream.
Anber’s article reminded me of how many in the boxing establishment criticised MMA when it first arrived, deriding it as a fad and “human cockfighting”. MMA has proven them wrong, going mainstream and attracting a considerable audience.
I reckon bare knuckle will do the same.
As more and more people get exposed to the sport, modern bare knuckle will establish itself as a popular combat sport and more exciting alternative to boxing and MMA.
Aaron McCallum and Lorawnt Nelson photos courtesy of BKB Bare Knuckle
