Christine Ferea: "We did our trash talk in the first fight, no need to do it again"
Christine "Misfit" Ferea will look to recapture the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship women's 125-pound title when she meets current champion, Helen Peralta, in a rematch
on Saturday, March 14 at INTRUST Bank Arena in Wichita, Kansas.
Ferea and Peralta first met at BKFC 7 in August 2019, in a bout that earned a 'Fight of the Year' nomination, but ultimately fell short of the eventual winning contest between Jason Knight and Artem Lobov.
On that night, Peralta would earn the judges nod on all scorecards, a decision Ferea didn't necessarily agree with.
"I don't think she did enough to take it," Ferea said. "She's tough, she can take a hit, but I don't think she did enough to win and take my belt."
The loss took its toll on Ferea, both mentally and physically.
"I broke my left hand and my right wrist, and also a fracture in my right hand," she said.
Aside from the hand injuries that would sideline Ferea for months, she also began thinking about her future.
"If I don't win this fight, I don't belong fighting," Ferea said of the pending rematch. "I should dominate her in every way. If I don't win, I really need to rethink what I am doing. I have too much experience. She's only been in the game for four years. I have 10 years. If I get caught with dumb shit again, then I need to rethink everything, my team, my camp, my training, myself, everything."
Because of the loss, Ferea is taking an entirely different approach to the rematch.
"I'm just focusing on myself, focusing my energy in training," she said.
The two women engaged in some very hostile trash talk prior to their first outing. Ferea hopes that will change this time around.
"I trash talk to build fights," she said. "But we did our trash talk in the first fight, no need to do it again. We're gonna try to kill each other in the ring, no need to try and do it out of it too."
Normally one to post training videos and photos on social media, Ferea says she is doing a lot less of that this time around.
"I'm not giving her any insight," Ferea said. "It's gonna be a completely different fight. My hands are not going to break this time around. I've really been working developing and strengthening my hands."
Another aspect that the former champion has changed up is her diet.
"I'm on a red meat diet. I'm eating bison and steak, whereas before I always wanted to be leaner so I ate turkey, chicken, and fish. I want to put on more muscle. I feel good. I feel stronger."
BKFC 11 marks the first time that Bare Knuckle FC will hold an event in Kansas.
"We've been working with Commissioner Adam Roorbach to bring BKFC to Kansas, and on March 14 we will make our long-awaited debut," said BKFC founder and President David Feldman.
While Ferea feels she may have been robbed of a win in the first fight, she is not worried about that happening in Kansas.
"This time I need to knock her out," Ferea said. "Maybe the other commission didn't like because I'm a 'Misfit' baby. (Jokingly laughs) Nah, I haven't won a decision in my pro career. But, I trust the Kansas Commission. I've always seen good things with them. Kansas has always been great. They are doing their homework, but at the end of the day you can't leave it to the judges."
"BKFC 11" will be broadcast across the United States and Canada, exclusively on pay-per-view through MultiVision Media, Inc., on all major television distribution outlets for $29.99. It will also be available to BKFC's international broadcast partners worldwide and via stream to all in-home and out-of-home connected devices through FITE.
Tickets for the live event are on sale this Thursday, January 30 at 10 a.m. CT and can be purchased online at www.selectaseat.com, by phone at 855-733-SEAT (7328) and in-person at the Select-A-Seat Box Office at INTRUST Bank Arena.