Ben Rothwell on the hunt for the BKFC heavyweight title, Rips the Champ Belcher

Ben Rothwell has declared his intention to compete for the BKFC heavyweight belt. The former UFC heavyweight contender improved his bare-knuckle boxing record to 2-0 with a third-round knockout of Josh Copeland at BKFC 41 on Saturday. Rothwell’s sophomore trip in the bare-knuckle boxing arena proved to be a considerably stiffer test after scoring a 19-second knockout in his promotional debut. Ben Rothwell, often known as “Big Ben,” had to endure early difficulties before reversing the tide against Copeland in the second and third frames, causing Copeland’s camp to stop the fight in the middle of the round.

Ben Rothwell explains his crazy fight

In an interview with MMA Hour, he explained: “The crazy thing is, most of this right here was done by two punches in the first 10 seconds of the fight,”.

 “Now, he hit me with some smaller shots in the fight, but literally most of this damage was done right away. He caught me a little bit off. I was slow the first round and he took advantage.” 

He further added: “I felt very much like my last fight in the UFC. I went, ‘I cannot let that happen.’ Because these are heavyweights, man — they only need to get one or two in. He sliced [around my eye], and then he came around with a hook and smashed it.”

He further said:

“What a way to start a fight. So it kind of woke me up a little bit and I got into the groove of the first round, and yeah, I sat down [between rounds] — I’ll tell you, the first time I sat down, I had one minute to get my s*** straight. I go, ‘You’re about the blow it, man. You’re a -600 favorite,’ which I hate, by the way. I absolutely hate that. I hate that kind of pressure. It’s just a greater fall. You lose this fight and you’re going to be the talk of the biggest loser. Read More: Bellator 290 Results and Payouts

“And I’m like, everything in my head, like, ‘Dude, I need to win. I have a set amount of fights left in front of me and I need to win them all so I can walk away complete,’” Rothwell continued. “And I sat on that stool and I had to get it right, and I said, ‘I know what I have to do.’ And the next two rounds, you’ve seen I implemented myself.”

Rothwell eyeing the BKFC heavyweight title 

Ben Rothwell is now a contender for the BKFC heavyweight belt. “Big Ben” stated on Monday that he has one fight remaining on his contract but expects to continue competing for BKFC in the near future. There’s a chance that happens as well, because Rothwell’s next fight may be significant. Rothwell called out BKFC heavyweight champion Alan Belcher, who was seated ringside for the fights, after his latest victory. Naturally, Rothwell is a massive heavyweight. For his two BKFC appearances, he weighed 292.3 pounds and 287 pounds, respectively, but he claimed on Monday that he typically weighs more than 300 pounds. For the majority of his bare-knuckle boxing matches, Belcher, on the other hand, has weighed between 220 and 230 pounds.

Who is Alan Belcher?

Belcher, a former middleweight in the UFC, is another example of a BKFC crossover success story. The 38-year-old MMA veteran is 4-0 in bare-knuckle boxing as a bulked-up heavyweight with three knockouts, including an impressive third-round victory over previous two-time champion Arnold Adams in February that made him the new BKFC heavyweight champion. Although a fight between Rothwell and Belcher would seem to be a logical next step, Rothwell is unsure of the champion’s willingness and interest. Read More: Sergio Pettis Net Worth 2024, MMA Salary, Endorsements, Cars, Houses, Properties, Etc.

Ben Rothwell spoke up against Alan Belcher

He said: “I’ll tell you, he’s not too keen on fighting me,”.

“His attitude, man — he’s just kind of not who I thought he was. He’s having problems. He’s a talented fighter, but outside of it he’s just kind of saying some really silly s*** to me. He’s run into me a couple times. He’s saying stuff that I’m like, ‘Are you serious right now?’

“He has a problem with the weight class,” Rothwell added. “So that’s a big problem. He’s goes, ‘I’m 220 pounds.’ Well, that’s your problem. I go, ‘Get out of the heavyweight division then.’ What’s your problem?”

“There’s big thing going on right now about that whole thing,” Rothwell said, “because each state commissions it differently, or they’re saying different weight classes. So far, most of the states I’ve talked to were like, ‘Hey, it’s whatever BKFC says. We’ll take after boxing.’ But then some of the states apparently don’t do boxing or MMA, so they don’t know how to regulate it, so they don’t know if they should use this weight class or that. Whatever the case is, Dave [Feldman] said, ‘You be 285.’ I go, ‘I’ll be 285. Make that your limit.’ Read More: Greg Hardy Net Worth 2024: Salary, Sponsorships, Cars, House and Properties

He Further added:

“I’ll be honest with you — come on, man, I’m not ripped — I think I can do myself a favor and cut down a little bit,” Rothwell continued. “During the UFC tenure though, I was walking around at 285 most of the time. I think it’s OK, I can get down there. And then I don’t have to worry about cutting weight and I’ll still be 285 pounds, I’m still dangerous.

“I’ll be 285 and then that’s it, it’s settled. So I’m like, ‘Belcher, that’s the weight limit. I’ll be 285, dude. You’re the champion of this division. You’ve got to fight me. So shut up about it.”

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