BKFC President David Feldman says he’s not playing games after stripping the belt from the BKFC lightweight champion.
Argentina’s Franco Tenaglia won the BKFC lightweight championship last October in the main event of BKFC Spain, defeating Tony Soto by majority decision.
Tenaglia’s fight with Soto was revered by the promotion as the ‘most vicious fight in combat sports history’, with UFC superstar and BKFC part-owner Conor McGregor agreeing to double the purses for both fighters for a hall-of-fame worthy fight.
Tenaglia and Soto were initially set to rematch in the main event of BKFC Texas on Saturday, however, Tenaglia withdrew due to visa issues a week out from the title fight.
BKFC boss David Feldman officially stripped Tenaglia of the title on Thursday, putting an interim title on the line in the new main event between Ben Bonner and Tony Soto at BKFC Texas.
On fight night, Feldman addressed why Tenaglia is no longer the lightweight champion.
David Feldman stripped Franco Tenaglia because he recently took MMA fight outside of the BKFC
Tenaglia was an MMA fighter before he joined the BKFC and the Argentinian returned to the sport twice this year.
Following his all-time fight with Soto in October, Tenaglia racked up two first-round submissions in a Spanish MMA promotion.
Tenaglia’s last MMA fight came a week out from his scheduled title defense against Soto.
That’s a no-go for BKFC President Feldman.
“I understand why he couldn’t get a visa to get here to United States. That’s not why he got stripped of the title,” Feldman said of Tenaglia at the BKFC post-fight press conference.
“In the interim, he had to make money. He took an MMA fight outside the organization—that doesn’t happen with us,” Feldman continued.
“If you fight outside the organization, you’re gonna lose your championship.
“I think another champion might have done that in the interim too. I’m not gonna call it out right now, but I have to do a little research, and I think that they’re gonna lose their title too.
“We’re not playing games here,” Feldman added.
“If we wanna be the biggest and the best, we have to act like we’re the biggest and the best. We have to perform like we’re the biggest and the best, and we have to hold people to the standards. And that’s just the way it is.”
Ben Bonner explains why he’s not undisputed champion after Franco Tenaglia was stripped of title
A new BKFC champion was crowned in the main event of BKFC Texas and his name is Ben Bonner.
England’s Bonner accepted a fight with Soto on eight days’ notice. On Thursday, the headliner was promoted to the interim lightweight championship, even though Tenaglia is no longer the undisputed champion.
So, why is Bonner not the undisputed champion?
“David Feldman had said a four-man tournament, the [undisputed] title is gonna be on the line in the four-man tournament, half a million pound tournament I think it was,” Bonner told Bloody Elbow at the post-fight press conference.
“I’ve just submitted my spot in that tournament.
“I’m the interim champion now which means I’m the f—— baddest man on the planet in the world at 155.
“And when we go into this four-man tournament, I’m gonna wipe the other three clean out. Make no mistake about that. I’ll be on a full camp, prepared and ready for war as I always am,” Bonner said.