Harry Gigliotti is poised to make an intriguing transition between bare-knuckle boxing organizations, with his highly anticipated promotional debut in Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) just days away. The former BKB Police Gazette champion has vacated his title to fully commit to his upcoming fight against Timmy Mason. Gigliotti is scheduled to step into the ring on March 28th as part of the BKFC Fight Night: Mohegan Sun event.
Speaking about his journey leading up to this bout in Connecticut, Harry Gigliotti stated,
“I had to vacate the title sadly and part ways with BKB, but we have a lot of new things coming up. I believe this new debut with BKFC will be beneficial for my future. I think Timmy Mason has a lot to contend with on March 28th.”
The 30-year-old fighter spoke positively about BKB, clarifying that his move was simply “just business” as he embarks on a multi-fight deal with BKFC later this week.
Even before making his inaugural walk for Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, the former BKB champion has already targeted BKFC’s 145-pound titleholder. Gigliotti openly declared his intentions, saying,
“I’m just really excited. I think Kai Stewart has a lot to handle, too… Hopefully, by summertime, I’ll get my title shot, depending on how this turns out, obviously. But as I said, Timmy Mason has a lot on his hands on March 28th, and I’m just looking forward to marketing and selling this fight, with bigger things ahead.”
Interestingly, Gigliotti was originally slated to defend his BKB title against Estevan Partida. Now, he’s fighting for BKFC on the very same day, March 28th, when BKB 52 also takes place – an intriguing coincidence in the broader bare-knuckle landscape.
When asked about the rapid shift from planning a third BKB title defense to preparing for his BKFC debut, Harry Gigliotti remarked,
“So now, obviously, I’m fighting a Southpaw where I was going to fight an Orthodox opponent. The training regimen has changed significantly, especially with sparring. However, the game plan remains the same: go out there, be ready, fight my fight, and stay calm and collected. I believe Timmy Mason is a tougher opponent than Estevan [Partida], who I think was still in his developing stage.
Timmy has experience; he possesses that boxing IQ and background. He performed quite well, dropping Jimmie Rivera in his last fight from what I saw. He also took that fight on short notice. So, I’m not taking this kid lightly; I know he’s the real deal. But I think this is, as I said, the right fight in terms of stepping stones. I’m trying to build my name, market myself, and promote myself.
Right now, Timmy Mason is the correct step in my career. I still want to fight Estevan; a part of me always will, because now people are obviously saying things like, ‘Oh, he pulled out because he was scared.’ It’s like, no, I pulled out for marketing and business reasons, realistically. I won’t go into it; it just is what it is at that point. But if he came over to BKFC, it would be no different; I’d still fight Estevan. I would love to make that fight happen. But my eyes are on the prize, man, trying to meet Conor McGregor, trying to promote myself, trying to build my platform and content. And I think I have the right fight for me. So, I have to do what’s right for my career from a business perspective, you know what I mean? But let’s get to Timmy Mason first, and then we can start talking about other things after. I’m not looking past Timmy Mason.
Let’s put it like that. But yeah, I’m going to have to make my adjustments. I’m fighting in a circle, not the Trigon. I think this will give me enough space to utilize my boxing IQ, you know?”
Harry Gigliotti: Proving Bare-Knuckle Pedigree in BKFC
Harry Gigliotti’s transition from BKB appears to be amicable, and he will now face a seasoned opponent in his BKFC debut. As he prepares to battle Timmy Mason, who is familiar with the BKFC circuit and has fought notable names like Jimmie Rivera and Brandon Allen, Gigliotti shared his thoughts on the intricacies of this matchup:
“Brandon Allen, I think, was underrated too. Realistically, I think the only time he’s ever been stopped was by ‘HD’ Howard Davis. So, ‘HD’ is one of the bigger names at BKFC. I don’t know if he’s fighting again, obviously, but ‘HD’ is my buddy. He comes from a well-rounded boxing pedigree. Brandon Allen is tough; I would fight Brandon Allen down the line too.
But Timmy… I don’t know. Did Timmy get stopped by Brandon Allen?… I mean, three rounds to go with Brandon Allen. And to drop Jimmie Rivera, who’s been around the block forever, I mean, UFC and all that. I can’t take this guy lightly. He’s heavy-handed. He fights pretty well with his boxing pedigree.
He comes in heavy with left hands. I will say I don’t think he’s fought anybody at my caliber yet, you know what I mean, when it comes to like picking and choosing and plotting. But it’s fighting, man. It takes one shot to change the whole dynamic of the fight. So, I plan on weathering whatever storm he brings. I plan on giving the crowd everything that I’ve shown in the past and just reiterating it here now at BKFC.”
