It’s been a big year for BYB Extreme Bare Knuckle Fighting. The promotion acquired UK-based promotion BKB in May, grabbing significant live and library rights and also bringing plenty of prominent European fighters into their fold.
Around that acquisition, BYB also signed or extended several notable fighters. Those include heavyweight champion “Hurricane” Ike Villaneuva and UFC veteran Jack Marshman. And, following BYB 26 in Denver in May and BYB 27 in Jacksonville in June, they’re set to make their Louisiana debut Saturday night with BYB 28: Bourbon Street Brawl. That card, headlined by title fights between Villaneuva and Gustavo “The Cuban Assassin” Trujillo and Monica Medina and Helen Peralta, will be broadcast on Fuse TV, The Fight Network, and beIN Sports Extra beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET.
Mike Goldberg has been at BYB for this year’s developments and much more. The veteran announcer has worked on broadcasts of the NFL, NBA, NHL, college football, college basketball, and much more over the years, but he’s been particularly known for his work in combat sports. Amongst his many ventures there, he worked on UFC broadcasts from 1997-2016, Bellator ones from 2017-2021, and BYB since 2021. But at the weigh-ins for BYB 28 Friday, Goldberg said the fast, knockout-oriented format of BYB in their small Trigon ring stands out to him amongst combat sports.
“Honestly, to me, BYB is the most exciting combat sport I have ever commentated, because you take all the elements and you bring them down a little more, a little more, little more,” he said. “But what I get to say pretty much every fight is ‘It is all over!’, and a lot of times “Just. Like. That.’
Goldberg said he still has an appreciation for other forms of combat sports, but the knockouts in BYB stand out.
“I mean, I love the ground game, I love it, Frank Mir showed us years ago that a submission can be very much like a really, really big knockout punch. But everybody wants to see the finish. Everybody wants to see constant action.
“And so with that in mind, I took a little bit of kickboxing, and then all my MMA years and just narrowed it down. And now it’s like ‘Get in there, fight, somebody’s going to win, somebody’s going to lose, probably going to be a knockout, and we’re good to go.’ So I really do enjoy this. And the Trigon makes it special.”
Goldberg said the unusual size and shape of the Trigon further enhances these fights.
“What it is is first of all, it forces you to fight. It forces you to fight. You can’t get caught in the corner. There’s nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.”
He said beyond what the Trigon does for the contests, it also works for his announcing.
“It’s funny because I used to always end the UFC with ‘And I’ll see you next time inside the Octagon!’ So now while I’m going off the air, ‘For my powerful partner Paulie Malignaggi. this is Mike Goldberg, we’ll see you next time inside the Trigon.’ So that was actually, I’m like, ‘Hey, I can use that, I can use that.’”
And Goldberg said the Trigon helps BYB broadcasts stand out amongst competitors as well.
“From a marketing perspective, because there’s a lot of bare knuckle organizations out there right now, and with our acquisition of BKB, I think the coolest thing is that when you’re flipping around…just like with the UFC and its octagon, when you’re flipping around, if you see the Trigon, you know it’s BYB. And that’s going to go global. And that’s what I think sets us apart from the others is not just it being unique, but it being our trademark.”
On that BKB acquisition, Goldberg said he thinks it’s a great chance for BYB to bring more international fighters stateside (Saturday’s event includes U.K. champion James Connelly facing fellow Brit Mark Tiffin as well as Ukrainian fighter Oleksandr Sitarchuk against Opelousas, Louisiana’s Logan Speyrer). He said it’s also a thrilling acquisition for giving them the opportunity to do cards in other countries (such as BYB 30 in Cardiff, Wales on August 17), and he’s overjoyed about the chance to get back to calling fights overseas.
“I’m so excited. I’m so excited. I think it’s an awesome move. I’ve done a lot of fights over there, as you know, and some of the greatest fights I’ve ever called were in the U.K. and Ireland. I remember calling Michael Bisping in his hometown in Manchester. The crowds over there are just incredible.
“And for our first UK event, if you will, you have Barrie Jones, who’s Welsh, fighting in Wales, coming out of retirement to fight in his homeland. And the Welsh are very proud people, so it’s a great thing. I’ve never been to Wales, I’m very excited to go and it’s just going to be great.”
Goldberg said the BKB acquisition is also boosting BYB’s talent roster and their overall profile.
“There’s so many great matchups. We’ve done a few crossovers, and if we can get a couple more like Connelly and LT [LT “Smash” Nelson], we’ll take it. But it gives everybody more visibility. It gives us a bigger base of fighters to look at, and it makes our titles even more impressive.”
And he said that ability to do more international matchups is becoming a selling point for BYB.
“It is now that we are one, if you will. Not to be confused with ONE. But we are one. Because, for example, Connelly holds the title at 168 in the UK but because LT has it here, their [BKB’s] champions turn into the number-one contenders. So he holds a belt and then he’s the number-one contender. So I can start talking about that potential rematch, after the fight with Barrie Jones of course, for LT.”
James Connelly wants another shot at L.T. Nelson 👊
Watch James Connelly tomorrow night ⬇️
Get 🎟️ now in the link in bio
📺 Watch in the link in bio#BYB28 #BYBExtreme #BareKnuckle pic.twitter.com/DGPsi2vaMh— BYB Extreme Bare Knuckle Fighting Series (@bybextreme) July 13, 2024
Goldberg said those kinds of international clashes appeal to broadcasters, fans, and fighters.
“It’s appealing to me. It’s exciting for a lot of the Brits who come over who haven’t been here before. And all of our fighters who have fought over there just love it. It’s an experience of a lifetime. So just in, in the different atmosphere itself, it’s cool. I want to call all the greatest fighters in the world. And I get to call a Barrie Jones fight, the GOAT, and I cannot wait.”
Goldberg said that BYB has also dramatically boosted their production quality in his time at the company, and they have further upgrades in the works.
“Everything has changed and everything has evolved massively and it’s going to continue to evolve on a daily basis. We’ve really taken our production very seriously. And we’ve upgraded something here, something there, and then made some major upgrades a couple of shows ago and now we’re we’re tuning it in and then. Once we have those tuned in, we’ll add a few more elements.”
He said he and Malignaggi haven’t changed their commentary much approach, but the production enhancements help them as well.
“Paulie and I are still pretty much the same, my partner, the Magic Man, the former two time world champion. But yes, much like our brand has, much like this sport has, our production has evolved massively. And we’re still headed up.”
As for Saturday’s card, Goldberg joked that the fans following Villanueva to New Orleans from his not-too-far hometown of Houston present him with an unusual thing he’s watching for on the card.
“A quick exit so I don’t get hurt if Ike doesn’t win, because most of the crowd’s going to be named Villanueva, or related to him!” he said with a laugh.
More seriously, Goldberg said he thinks it’s a great card, especially with the two title fights (Villaneuva-Trujillo for the men’s heavyweight title and Monica Medina-Helen Peralta for the new BYB Featherweight women’s title) atop it.
“I’m just looking forward to the entire night. I really am. And I love the two title fights. I mean, Helen Peralta is is just a beast. I love Monica. Monica is one of the nicest people in the world. She could still say she was 2-1 against Patty Juarez, but she gets a chance to claim another belt tomorrow, which would be the first time in history for the women. Obviously LT has them simultaneously on the men’s side.”
“And then the main event, I mean, you saw the magic here today. Ike and Gustavo, that’s just going to be a clash of titans. No disrespect to the Mad Titan, Jay Fish [also on the card, facing fellow heavyweight Dylan Rush], but it will be a clash of titans. I’m really excited also because of the atmosphere, with Monica being from Gulfport, Mississippi, and of course H-Town being represented by Ike.”
Ike Villanueva is ready for the challenge 👊
He doesn’t want an easy way. #BYB28 #BYBExtreme #BareKnuckle pic.twitter.com/W160mNmiRZ
— BYB Extreme Bare Knuckle Fighting Series (@bybextreme) July 12, 2024
BYB 28: Bourbon Street Brawl will be broadcast on Fuse TV, The Fight Network, and beIN Sports Xtra beginning at 8:30 p.m. ET Saturday night.
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