The Ultimate Fighter 20 vet Bec Rawlings snapped a rough start to her bare-knuckle career with a solid win at Bare Knuckle FC: KnuckleMania 5.
Bec Rawlings hadn’t tasted bare-knuckle victory in five years leading up to BKFC: KnuckleMania 5 on Saturday in Philadelphia. But facing a fan favorite in Taylor Starling, and after almost two years off, Rawlings showcased one of the best performances of her combat sports career.
Rawlings and Starling treated fans to a wild undercard fight ahead of the Eddie Alvarez vs. Jeremy Stephens main event. Both fighters had their moments in the ring, but Rawlings’ hand speed was on full display as she knocked Starling down just minutes into the fight.
After the early knockdown, Rawlings never looked back as she outlanded and outpointed Starling for the full five rounds. She got the nod on the judges’ scorecards en route to a unanimous decision win.
Bec Rawlings rides early knockdown to snap BKFC losing skid
Rawlings snapped a four-fight losing streak in Bare Knuckle FC with the victory over Starling. She took almost two full years away from the ring before KnuckleMania 5 since her unanimous decision defeat to Christine Ferea.
After back-to-back losses to Ferea, Rawlings searched for clarity in her fighting career and her first bare-knuckle win since 2019. Her most recent win came against Cecilia Ulloa at BKFC 4 when the promotion was still in its infancy.
In between bare-knuckle pursuits, Rawlings appeared twice in the Bellator cage, falling to Ilara Joanne by submission and defeating Elina Kallionidou by decision. Rawlings appeared on The Ultimate Fighter 20, and despite a loss to Tecia Pennington during the show’s airing, secured a modest tenure in the UFC.
Conor McGregor hijacked BKFC interview with a post-fight faceoff
Rawlings’ impressive performance at KnuckleMania 5 wasn’t the only standout performance on the card. In the main event, Stephens defeated Alvarez by corner stoppage, which secured a post-fight faceoff with Conor McGregor.
UFC heavyweight vet Ben Rothwell secured the BKFC heavyweight championship by earning a 36-second knockout of Mick Terrill. He remains undefeated in bare-knuckle fighting after an up-and-down UFC tenure.
BKFC is off to a strong start to 2025 and after Rawlings’ streak-snapping win, she’ll look to move one step closer to a potential title shot.