Boxing world champion once dubbed ‘Welsh Floyd Mayweather’ set for bare-knuckle debut aged 39

talkSPORT will be in Cardiff for BKB 55 on Saturday when ‘The Welsh Floyd Mayweather’ attempts to make fighting history.

Lee Selby earned that nickname during his three-year reign as IBF featherweight champion between 2015 and 2018.

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Now, the 39-year-old is taking off the gloves for the first time against Antonio Rizzo this weekend at Ice Arena Wales in bare-knuckle boxing’s trigon.

Selby eyes second world title

“I’m well into double figures in residencies,” Selby said.

“World gloved and world bare-knuckle champion has a nice ring to it.”

Nobody else has conquered the boxing ring and the bare-knuckle boxing trigon, with Paulie Malignaggi falling short against Rolando Dy in Manchester last month.

The Filipino kept his super-welterweight title by roughing up Malignaggi and knocking him out in the second round.

Selby launches his career with BKB against Rizzo, insisting he’s ‘dirty’ enough to make it to the top.

At the peak of his boxing career, Selby was known as an untouchable rhythm boxer with an outstanding jab, but he says there’s another side to him that will be revealed with his bare fists.

The Barry native told talkSPORT: “When I boxed, I looked to hit and not get hit, but in the gym, I took more risks. 

“I would spar heavier guys and stand and fight. I’m dirty in sparring. I hold and hit, I hit people on the way down, but in championship fights I was hitting and making them miss.”

Though he insists there’s enough room to box in the triangle that measures 16 feet along its three sides, Selby has added a grappling coach to his team ahead of his first fight with no gloves.

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Rizzo comes from Italy with a 1-0 bare-knuckle record, having also fought at kickboxing promotion K-1, and beating him looks set to secure Selby a shot at world super-lightweight champion Estevan Partida.

California’s Partida called for a fight with Selby after winning the vacant belt by stopping Kallum Skhane in six rounds in May.

Who else is on BKB 55 card?

Heavyweight knockout specialist Kamil Sokolowski is another former gloved boxer who is fighting at BKB 55 and close to a world title shot.

From Poland and based in Devon, Sokolowski fought out of the away corner in his 42-fight pro gloved career and went in with fighters of the calibre of Dillian Whyte, Bakhodir Jalolov and Lucas Browne.

Sokolowski has chinned all three bare-knuckle opponents inside just one round, and if Mark O’Neill goes the same way on Saturday night, Sokolowski could face heavyweight champion Gustavo Trujillo next.

‘The Cuban Assassin’ has won all eight bare-knuckle fights in the first round and is also a world-ranked gloved pro boxer.

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Meanwhile, the fight of the night looks sure to be a bridgerweight clash between Dan Podmore and Jarome Hatch.

Both men are loved by fans for having up-and-down, action-packed bouts.

Coverage of BKB 55 in Cardiff begins on talkSPORT Boxing’s YouTube channel at 4.00pm.