BKFC 9 Lobov vs Knight 2 is the biggest BKB rematch in the last century Photo by @bareknucklefc ( Twitter

BKFC 9 goes Saturday, November 16th at 9:00 pm EST

Who wins the hotly anticipated rematch between Lobov and Knight?

Will there be a new heavyweight champion? Can Bennett derail the progress of Bedford?

BKFC 9 Lobov vs Knight 2 emanates from Mississippi Coast Coliseum & Convention Center in Biloxi on Saturday night. Artem Lobov and Jason Knight will run it back after their visceral display of combat sports excellence earlier this year.

Chase Sherman also looks to defend his heavyweight hardware against the man contending for his crown Joey Beltran. Also, Johnny Bedford, who holds multiple bare-knuckle belts, will jump up a weight class to fight “Felony” Charles Bennett in a non-title bout.

BKFC 9 Lobov vs Knight 2 Odds

Fighter Odds Artem Lobov -210 Jason Knight +170

All Odds taken on Nov 13th.

The initial fight that these men had will stand as one of the most knockdown, drag-out combat sports displays ever seen. Both men had each other rocked at various points and Knight spit out several teeth during the bout. Knight was unhappy with the decision and thought he had done enough to win.

Later on the in the calendar year, he now has a chance at redemption.

Things are heating up between @Jasonthekid23 & @RusHammerMMA ahead of #BKFC9 Is Knight willing to put all the ? on the line? pic.twitter.com/96NTOVY0MS — Bare Knuckle FC (@bareknucklefc) November 6, 2019

With the help of that initial performance against Knight, Lobov has since become the biggest star in bare-knuckle boxing. After the Knight fight, Artem defeated former Boxing world champion Paulie Malignaggi in a fight that drew a lot of attention and had the most press coverage of any BKFC event prior to that.

Conversely, Knight has not fought since the first Lobov bout. He was slated to face Leonard Garcia in the summer but had to withdraw as the result of an injury. The star power of Lobov coupled with the intense intrigue surrounding a rematch could lead to great business for BKFC 9 Lobov vs Knight 2.

BKFC 9 Lobov vs Knight 2 Tale of the Tape

Lobov VS Knight 2-0 (BKB) Record 0-1 (BKB) 0 Knockouts 0 2 Current Streak 0 SBG Ireland Team/ Camp Affiliation Jason Knight MMA Paulie Malignaggi, Jason Knight Statement Win(s) N/A Historical Fight of Significance in the BKB Hall of Fame (Lobov vs Knight) Titles/ Distinctions Historical Fight of Significance in the BKB Hall of Fame (Lobov vs Knight)

Knight has gone on record saying he greatly underestimated Lobov prior to the first fight. He also indicated that he made a lot of tactical errors the first time out and that the rematch would be a better representation of his fight IQ.

Though Lobov has claimed some notable wins and seems to have found his niche in BKFC, I see Knight winning, setting up a rubber match down the line.

Pick: Knight (+170)

Sherman vs Beltran Odds

Fighter Odds Chase Sherman -230 Joey Beltran +180

Sherman was able to claim the heavyweight hardware by defeating Arnold Adams at BKFC 7 but, in his mind, he is just barely scraping the surface of what he can achieve in his combat sports career. Sherman has been looking for an opponent that will really toe the line with him and not play some sort of defensive-minded game from the outside.

Beltran is known to bring it that his BKFC fight with Tony Lopez in 2018 was acknowledged by the BKB Hall of Fame as a Historical Fight of Significance. It’s an honor he values greatly but the belt would mean that much more for Beltran. It’s a hotly anticipated bout and one that will likely deliver big.

Both men feel slighted about not being positioned in the main event. The heavyweight title is up for grabs and when I interviewed both men, they each articulated their displeasure about not being the top of the marquee.

They are already known to be action-heavy fighters but they have added incentive to want to push further and steal the show. I think Sherman gets the victory and makes his first successful title defense.

Pick: Sherman (-230)

Bedford vs Bennett Odds

Fighter Odds Johnny Bedford -130 Charles Bennett EVEN

In the absence of being able to defend his belts at 135 lbs, Bedford is switching divisions to take on one of the most animated, infamous fighters in MMA history. The artist formerly known as Krazy Horse now goes by Felony and is looking to carve out his name on the BKB circuit by defeating Bedford.

“I don’t think Felony has won a fight. He should probably go back to Krazy Horse” -Johnny Bedford #BKFC9 Full feature dropping soon at https://t.co/dGDdLZ4jP5 @BrutalBedford @bareknucklefc @FiteTV @SusanCingari — Dilly Eilish (@DylanBowker) November 13, 2019

“Felony” Charles Bennett is a known character to MMA fans who brings a high energy style both in his fighting approach and in how he conveys his personality. The future goals for Bedford, should he get the desired outcome here, is to take more super fights at 145 pounds. The big bout that he has his eyes on is Artem Lobov, should Lobov get the W in the main event.

Whether that happens remains to be seen but I do see Bedford defeating Bennett on Saturday night.

Pick: Bedford (-130)