Travis Thompson on BKFC 10: "My walkout entrance will be longer than the fight"
Travis "The Animal" Thompson returns to the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship squared circle for the fifth time in 10 events when he meets Joshua Boudreaux at BKFC 10 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida on February 15.
"I love bare knuckle. "I love the Feldmans," Thompson said of Bare Knuckle FC President David Feldman and his son Dave.
"They do a great job. If anyone else was running it, I wouldn't do it."
While Thompson has become a pillar of the BKFC family, he knows that he needs to "shine" next week in the "Sunshine State."
"I'm going to win. It's not that I have to win, I'm going to win," the Pennsylvania native said.
Thompson enters the BKFC 10 contest with just one win in four outings with the world's most prominent bare knuckle promotion. While he has never been finished, Thompson has also never been in a boring fight, and next week's contest should be no different.
"The Animal" is a BKFC fan favorite and has been since the promotion's debut in 2018. At BKFC 1, Thompson dropped a unanimous decision to fellow BKFC staple Reggie Barnett. He bounced back with second round knockout of Ivan Rocka at BKFC 4.
In June 2019, Thompson found himself in a war against Abdiel Velazquez at the pay-per-view blockbuster BKFC 6 headlined by Paul Malignaggi and Artem Lobov. And then, in his last outing, Thompson took an extremely short notice fight against professional boxer Dat Nguyen.
"Dat is the best in my weight class," Thompson said. "I took that fight with just four days notice. I had two days to train, and two days of media, weigh-ins, and then the fight, and I still earned 'Fight of the Night.' It just goes to show what I'm capable of."
A week and a half out from his next date with destiny, Thompson is confident he will walk out of Fort Lauderdale with his hand raised.
"Josh Boudreaux has zero chance of beating me," Thompson said.
"I'll bring an ankle brace for him to limp out there with," he continued, mocking the fact that Boudreaux sustained a leg injury in his last BKFC outing and could not continue.
"I'm going to put him down, put him to sleep," Thompson continued.
The brash 36-year-old Thompson did not stop there.
My entrance will be longer than my fight," he said suggesting that he will make quick work of Boudreaux. "I've broken shit in fights before. You don't tell people. What did he have, turf toe? Excuses are like assholes. Everybody has one and they all stink."
Thompson said that he will be walking down the ramp along with a rapper out of Philadelphia who will be performing before the live audience. "The Animal" states, "It's a show. I will have the chain around my neck. It's gonna be fun."
When asked for a prediction , Thompson continued the verbal onslaught.
"Knockout. What does he want to get hit? That is the question. It's up to him."
Another thing to keep an eye out for will be Thompson's post-fight wardrobe. Known for wearing glamorous suits to the press conference and after party, Thompson says he is well prepared to make a statement at BKFC 10.
"I've got a really nice suit lined up," he said. "Spent a little more than I should have. But, I look professional. Get the hell out of here with your sweatshirt and sweatpants at the press conferences and media events," said in a blanket statement about fighters who do not dress to impress.
You are a professional. People look up to you. You are not supposed to look ordinary."
"My suit is going to make Jeff Houston (BKFC ring announcer) and Scott Burt (President of the Bare Knuckle Boxing Hall of Fame) look bad." Both Jeff and Scott have been known to turn a few heads with their in-ring attire.
About BKFC 10
A showdown between Cuban sensation Hector "Showeather" Lombard and hard-hitting David Mundell will headline BKFC 10 as Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) hits South Florida with an explosive cruiserweight main attraction taking place Saturday, February 15 live on pay-per-view from the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention Center in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
The co-main event will feature an all-action 155-pound contest between Jim Alers and Kaleb Harris. Also competing on February 15 will be Luis Palomino facing Elvin Britto in a 155-pound bout, as well as Dat Nguyen squaring off against Abdiel Velazquez in a 135-pound fight.
"BKFC 10" 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 are on sale now at bareknuckle.tv.