Every time the BKFC heads out to Albuquerque, you can expect fireworks!
After a wild event in Bulgaria, where three fights almost ended in a draw, we head back stateside and get a flyweight main event clash between a true combat sports OG in John ‘The Magician' Dodson and Dagoberto ‘King Dago' Aguero. Dago is far less experienced than the man who the MMA flyweight GOAT claimed was his toughest fight in Dodson. Dago is tough, scrappy and ready to make good on his first ever title shot in the BKFC. We also have a phenomenal co-main event with Donald Sanchez who is looking like the BKFC King of New Mexico after his last sub one-minute knockout over Noah Cutter where he landed the cleanest 2-3 you may ever see. Last week was tough to gauge pre-flop! A lot of dogs won and a few favorites just looked bad. As you know, you aren't getting predictions here, but you are getting the best insight in the game and you're getting it ahead of everyone else!
John Dodson vs Dagoberto Aguero
Flyweight Title Fight
John Dodson is just a freak. Plain and simple. This dude looks like a ghost in there and has only absorbed 21 punches over three fights. Remove JR Ridge from that equation and he's taken just 6 punches in the Squared Circle. Dodson is looking like a guy who is going to lap the flyweight division two or three times before he looks mortal and his opponent is really up against a challenge here. If you're an X-Men fan and haven't seen Dodson fight, think of Azazel. This guy teleports around the ring, has otherworldly reflexes and almost hypnotizes his opponents.
Dagoberto Aguero is a talented kid with a 17-0 boxing record. This may not be breaking news to you but the kid is up against it here. He could rise to the challenge with his tight boxing and power but his speed will not amount to ‘The Magician.' Aguero went on a 15-fight win streak in boxing but lost his last two before removing the gloves and it hasn't been mentioned, but maybe you have to be Armenian to beat the guy. His only two professional losses were delivered by Armenians.
Paths to Victory
All jokes aside, Aguero looked great in his last bout but it was against Chancey Wilson. No slander against Wilson, but Wilson is 3-3-0 in BK and has some work to do before he can fight the likes of a John Dodson. Now I may be biased because I have been on the Dodson side in every one of his BKFC fights and he's been an auto-bet for me in the past. Dodson's speed and accuracy is unmatched in this division. Fighting from southpaw also gives Dodson an advantage. Chancey Wilson fights from southpaw and threw just over 100 strikes against the boxer in Aguero when they toed the line. If you let Dodson throw 100 strikes in the BKFC, he's going to be punching your unconscious body 85 times! Aguero will need to focus on offense more than defense here. Dodson has a presence in the Squared Circle and has fought some of the baddest 125 pounders on Earth. His BKFC competition gets intimidated when they toe the line against the legend. Aguero CANNOT let ‘The Magician' get rolling downhill. The moment we see Dodson land an eight-punch combo against Dago shelling up, it's a wrap. My advice from my couch to the high-level athlete in Dago, is to know you belong in there. Have hate in your heart for this likable former Chuck E Cheese employee, because he knows he's going to toss you around like the flavorless, cardboard pies coming out of Mr. Cheese's kitchen. Dodson will likely be a -300 to -400 favorite here and despite me telling you this should rarely be the case in the BKFC, this line makes sense. Bet responsibly!
Donald Sanchez vs Dallas Davison
Middleweight Co-Main Event
In the co-main event of the evening we have a guy in Donald Sanchez that made me eat my words in record time in his last showing. I had the nerve to say that Noah Cutter was more dangerous but Donald Sanchez was the better fighter. Turns out, Donald Sanchez is on an entirely different level than I thought at his age. He faces Dallas Davison who is no slouch and this is much more of an even match in hindsight because Sanchez has a couple of grenades for hands. While Davison's chin isn't quite Fort Knox, it is like your crazy neighbor's doomsday bunker that you feel safe in but if serious heat comes, you're probably screwed. Davison has to be watching that last Sanchez fight thinking that he is safe because he is a step up in competition vs Noah Cutter but he needs to wipe that thought out of his mind. Sanchez puts asses in seats in Albuquerque better than anyone, and he's going to show out in his hometown. Guy can sell a glass of water to a drowning man if it's in the 505, and he should be explicitly favored in his city because he's a showman. This is a blood-n-gutz fight but Sanchez gets rolling downhill fast and may start a run at the title if he wins here against the 2-2 Davison which I believe happens.
Will Santiago vs James Dennis
Welterweight Bout
This fight could be a main event on a fight night card and I think these two are battling it out for that kind of a role in the near future. Will ‘The Brown Bomber' Santiago is one of my favorite under-the-radar fighters because he has fought better competition than some bare knuckle champions and most of y'all don't even know about it! James Dennis isn't going to give two you-know-what's about my thoughts on Santiago because this guy brings a calculated hate into the Squared Circle every time he fights. He doesn't throw random punches and he will rarely overwhelm his opponent but he has a habit of winning. Dennis is very good but he can be easily outworked and bullied against high-level competition so let's see where the line's at and if it's remotely close, ‘The Brown Bomber' should be the side. If the line's wide consider Santiago as a parlay piece.
Kyle McElroy vs Nick Kohring
Light Heavyweight Bout
We all want Kyle McElroy to represent here, but he has a tall task ahead of him. He undertook an incredible body transformation after going 0-3, and his first win came after he essentially lost half of his body fat and replaced it with muscle. He has fought some solid BKFC competition like Josh Watson and Zach Calmus but the competition level jumps up here a bit. He's going up against a 13-2 professional MMA fighter who has competed on the UFC's Ultimate Fighter, and I feel the BKFC is trying to see if McElroy is the real deal or not. McElroy has gotten shredded but this isn't a physique contest and for me, he just doesn't have that killer instinct in the Squared Circle. If he wins here, I will be the first to congratulate the guy, but I think he needs to improve his striking and head movement to compete at the BKFC level. Give me the debuting Kohring despite his two years of inactivity. He's going to be a sneaky play!
Lorenzo Coca vs Ruben Warr
Lightweight Bout
We have two solid mixed martial artists going at it here who interestingly both have very similar records. Lorenzo Coca has a record of 9-9-0 and Ruben Warr has a record of 12-12-0. There are reasons on both sides to place your hard earned money but I'll give you some reasons to pause and make sure you don't get too overly confident in either fighter. Coca has not fought since 2011 and had hoped to return earlier but tragically, his son passed away during that fight camp. How can you not root for a guy going through such hardship but manages to have the courage to compete for himself and his family? Shifting gears, Ruben Warr has been far more active in recent years but doesn't have a single knockout in his MMA career. He has good technique and volume but the power just isn't there. He's going to need knockout power to put away Coca who says "this is personal," and wants to get another couple good fights under his belt before full retirement. Usually, when someone mentioned the "R word," I stay away from any action but this is different. Coca will be damned if he doesn't give this is all and I see a win coming for the gritty vet in the mid to late rounds.
Frank Lester vs Keith Richardson
Cruiserweight Bout
I'm surprised this fight is so low on the card! Frank Lester is a German mixed martial artist now fighting out of Temecula, California with all of his wins coming by finish. The majority of those wins came by T/KO. Despite what Tapology is telling you heading into fight week, The bantamweight champion, Keith Richardson is NOT moving up five classes to fight at cruiserweight although that would be a sight to see. This Keith Richardson is an entirely different one with far less professional experience. He comes over from the professional boxing world and despite having a 2-6-0 record, he's tough and he's better than the record shows. Richardson had a warm up fight late last year while Lester is coming in fairly cold having been off for almost a decade. Despite the time off, I believe the German-American in Lester finds the chin of Richardson. I feel like he's going to do it early as well but Richardson will get his licks in. Should be a fun fight buried in the middle of a stacked BKFC 59!
Marc Entenberg vs Van Vo
Featherweight Bout
Marc Entenberg looks to keep the momentum rolling after his victorious debut performance. This is a favorable matchup for him in Van Vo who seems like a guy that just enjoys fighting. It's hard to tell if he's very committed to getting better between fights or if he just enjoys getting in there and testing himself. This is a building spot for whichever fighter comes out on top. Entenberg fought a similar skill leveled opponent to Vo in Darrick Gates but he's the only BKFC fighter who's let Darrick Gates get out of the first round. He did knock Gates down four times with only 16 landed punches. The power is there for Entenberg, Vo is there to get hit, I feel this is straightforward. Last thing on Vo, he needs to improve his accuracy and conserve energy to fight more effectively. If we see him taking big, looping swings right away he's going to be in trouble. I expect a round one or two finish.
Anthony Sanchez vs Justin Street
Bantamweight Bout
A great way to open the main card in Albuquerque with Anthony Sanchez and Justin Street. Sanchez is a fast starter but can fade late in the fight. Street was supposed to make his debut at BKFC 57 but the fight fell through on his opponent's end. He's getting a huge break with this matchup because he was set to face Matt Russo who is higher level than Sanchez but by no means is this an easy fight for Street. Derek Perez couldn't put Sanchez away and we know that guy is too tough for his own good while also possessing some good power at 135. All of Street's professional MMA wins have come by knockout and he has solid defense in a striking match. Give me the new guy in Justin Street but this is a risky one. If Sanchez overwhelms the debuting fighter here early, it's a wrap! The longer this fight goes, the more it benefits Street who should come out knowing how dangerous Sanchez is early.
Prelims
Running quickly through the prelims, we have some solid matchups with some solid talent. Felipe Chavez and Leandro Torres both debuted on the BKFC Prospect Series card in Albuquerque and Miami respectively. They both won dominantly and both deserve a step up in competition but I think Chavez has the higher skill set in this matchup. He's fought a higher level of competition and competed in Bellator. Torres is great and has a future here but I feel Chavez is a level above. Don't be surprised if this goes the distance and we are never 100% sure what the judges are looking for.
Manuel Otero has not fought in MMA since the year I graduated highschool which is 2009. Digging a little deeper, he switched over to boxing where he has gone 2-7 between 2009 to 2016 where it looks like he's decided to take a break. Being welcomed back by Mickey Furnier isn't great for Otero but it isn't a horrible matchup for him. Mickey lost to Zach Calmus in his debut. Calmus's best weapon is his toughness by far but his toughness has carried him past some people I thought he would lose to. Give me the guy that has been more active recently and has a significant age advantage of seven years. They size up well, both being short for the heavyweight division and this should be an interesting one!
Kicking off the night we have a low level flyweight bout by BKFC standards. Just because it's low level doesn't mean it won't be awesome because I see an early TKO coming. Following Richey's BKFC career, he lost his first fight by decision, lost his second fight in round three and lost his last fight in round two. I'm seeing a pattern here and this fight likely ends in the first round and I think Lewis drops Richey with one of his first combinations and Richey stands up after the ref has gotten past the 10 count.
Written by Ryan Dean*Fight card subject to change
