BKFC founder Dave Feldman lifts lid on ‘little issue’ during Darren Till vs Yoel Romero negotiations

A weight disagreement almost jeopardised Darren Till’s BKFC clash with Yoel Romero next month.

The two former UFC stars are set to collide in the main event of a stacked BKFC 94 card at Manchester’s AO Arena on September 26.

BKFC

Till, who challenged for the UFC middleweight title in 2018, made his bare-knuckle debut in May, scoring a brutal one-punch knockout of Aaron Chalmers.

He has been tipped for a massive future in BKFC, which is co-owned by Conor McGregor, with a potential mega-fight against Mike Perry on the horizon.

However, ‘The Gorilla’ has to first overcome Romero, who is still living up to his ‘Soldier of God’ nickname at 49.

BKFC founder Dave Feldman has already said Till vs Romero is the biggest bare-knuckle event ever staged in the UK.

And although Feldman revealed negotiations were ‘very easy’ from both sides, he mentioned one thing that could’ve prevented the former UFC stars’ collision.

Inside Till vs Romero BKFC negotiations

“The weight thing was a little issue,” Feldman told talkSPORT.com.

“So we had to get the weight thing done right. They also wanted drug testing and we got that done.

“Other than that, as far as just getting it done, it really took a week or two. It wasn’t bad.”

Although Till vs Romero has been advertised as a cruiserweight (205lbs) and light heavyweight (185lbs) fight, it is being contested at a 190lbs catchweight.

Romero was likely pushing for a higher division to avoid a huge weight cut, while Till, who has already recognised the threat his opponent possesses, would not have wanted Romero to come in too big.

Getty

Getty

So the pair settled somewhere in the middle.

Feldman previews Till vs Romero

Feldman believes it is a ‘tough fight’ for both men, but one with lots at stake for the winner.

“This is not an easy fight for Darren Till or for Yoel Romero,” Feldman said.

“If Darren Till is able to pull it off, and I think he’s capable of it, then he obviously has some really, really big things happening for him next year with us.

“We’ve got [Romero] on board for a couple of fights — there’s always opportunity. If you win and look good, the opportunity will always present itself.

“And if he does, we will definitely have something out there for him. We already have some possibilities for him, but I don’t know who’s going to win.”

Dirty Boxing

Till will no doubt be a favourite heading into the BKFC 94 main event.

At the launch press conference earlier this month, the Liverpudlian highlighted his love for the violence bare-knuckle boxing presents.

His comments have left boss Feldman overjoyed at bringing him on board.

“It’s great,” Feldman concluded, speaking on Till’s value to the company.

“Because when you’re paying them life-changing money and they don’t give you that kind of respect and don’t help you promote the sport in the way that it should be promoted, it’s a bad thing.

“But Darren Till did all that. He promoted it well. He said a quote that everybody needs BKFC. He’s just said some really, really great things about the organisation.

“I’ve got nothing but love and respect for Darren Till and I’m looking forward to a good relationship with him.”