Former UFC bantamweight Jimmie Rivera has signed with Bare Knuckle FC and will make his promotional debut on May 6.
Rivera's opponent for his first fight in bare-knuckle boxing is expected to be announced later this week.
BKFC announced the signing in a press release and on their social media that Rivera will fight at the upcoming BKFC 25 event in Orlando, FL. He becomes the latest former UFC fighter to make the move to BKFC along with Chad Mendes, Paige VanZant, and Mike Perry.
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Rivera last fought in the UFC Octagon in Feb. 2021, losing a unanimous decision to Pedro Munhoz. Before that, he lost two of his previous three fights to Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling back in 2019.
Rivera's last UFC win came against Cody Stamann in July 2020 when he earned a unanimous decision victory and appeared on the path to bouncing back in the division. He was scheduled to fight at the recent Triller Triad Combat 2 event last month before the card was postponed.
It's not yet clear what division Rivera will compete in BKFC, but he's fought at bantamweight for the majority of his MMA career. After falling short of a title on The Ultimate Fighter: Season 14 at featherweight, he went on to win 13 straight fights and, in the process, make it back to the UFC.
Rivera's signing with BKFC had been rumored to be in the works since last November when his manager Malki Kawa revealed the planned move in an interview with The Schmo.
Who do you want Jimmie Rivera to face in his BKFC debut?
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