Ben Bonner landed the interim lightweight title on June 21 when he faced Tony Soto at BKFC 76 at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. Battling it out in the main event, the British fighter defeated his opponent of Hickory, NC by unanimous decision with scores of 49-44, 47-46 and 48-45.
On his way to victory, Bonner (4-1), who took the fight on short notice, scored two knockdowns in the first and second rounds. Soto (6-2) was originally scheduled to challenge current BKFC 155-pound titleholder Franco Tenaglia (4-1) in a rematch, but the Argentinian champion was forced to withdraw due to a VISA issue.
“Tony is one of the toughest men I’ve ever shared the ring with,” Bonner said. “Fair play to him, but like I said before, I’m the baddest man at 155 on this planet, and there’s nobody on this planet that’s going to beat me. Not a single man.”
In the co-main event, former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski (1-0) made a successful BKFC debut, defeating Josh Copeland (2-2) of Denver, CO via fourth-round TKO due to a doctor stoppage. The latter suffered a cut over his eye and was unable to continue.
Post-fight, Arlovski called out and went face-to-face with Ben Rothwell, who is the reigning BKFC champion at heavyweight. The two fighters previously met in MMA, with Arlovski taking victories on both occasions.
In the featured bout between debuting former UFC fighters, Jessica Eye (1-0) of Rootstown Township, OH defeated Mariya Agapova (0-1) of Kazakhstan by unanimous decision. The judges scored the flyweight contest 49-45, 50-45 and 59-45.
In other BKFC 76 fights
Among other BKFC 76 results, Kenzie Morrison (1-0) of Fayetteville, AR dropped and stopped Alex Davis (1-2) of Coal Mountain, WV in the first round at heavyweight. The time was 1:03 into the round.
Juan Carlos De Leon (2-0) of Fort Worth, TX defeated Ruben Warr (2-2) of Louisville, KY via third-round stoppage at lightweight. The fight was stopped 48 seconds into the round, after Warr retired citing problems with vision.
Anthony Garrett (3-0) of Kansas City, KS stopped Haze Wilson (4-1) of Tulsa, OK in the first round at heavyweight. The time was 1:36 into the round. On his way to victory, Garrett suffered a knockdown and then dropped Wilson twice.
Rodney Hinton (2-0) of Hudson, FL defeated newcomer Darren Whitney (0-1) of Lewisville, TX by unanimous decision at welterweight. All three scores were 47-46. During the fight, Hinton was deducted a point in the first round for striking a grounded opponent, and both fighters scored a knockdown.
Jake Heffernan (1-0) of Houston, TX defeated fellow newcomer Jeremiah Castillo (0-1) of Hereford, TX via first-round TKO at lightweight. The time was 1:54 into the round.
In the main card opener, Willie Gates (1-0) of Fontana, CA knocked out Brandon Meneses (2-2-1) of North Richland Hills, TX in the first round at bantamweight. The time was 1:24 into the round.
In BKFC 76 prelims
Atop the BKFC 76 prelims, Cameron Delano (1-0) of Liberty, SC stopped Jesse Desrosier (0-1) of the Blackfeet Nation in the third round at middleweight. The time was 1:05 into the round. Delano suffered a knockdown in the opening round and also dropped his opponent once in the first round and twice in the third.
Jeremy Sauceda (3-2) of Odessa, TX defeated debuting Israel Rodriguez (0-1) of Amarillo, TX by knockout in the first round at welterweight. The time was 1:03 into the round. En route to victory, Sauceda sent his opponent to the canvas.
In the first fight of the night, Roderick Stewart (2-2) of Abilene, TX defeated newcomer James Gray (0-1) of Weatherford, TX by unanimous decision at light heavyweight. The scores were 30-26, 29-27 and 30-26. In the second round, Stewart secured a knockdown.