Veteran Ben Rothwell signs contract with BKFC after UFC release

Ben Rothwell is the latest prominent UFC veteran to sign with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship.

The promotion confirmed the deal after Rothwell initially announced the news during an appearance on ”The MMA Hour.” A date for Rothwell’s BKFC debut is expected to be announced soon.

Rothwell was scheduled to face Alexander Gustafsson on May 21, but the bout was canceled after the Kenosha, Wisc., native was released from the UFC for at the time were unknown reasons. Rothwell offered some clarity to the situation on Monday, when he revealed that the Las Vegas-based promotion told him it would not negotiate a new contract until after the fight, which was the last on the existing deal.

“Even if I go in and perform well, knock out Gustafsson in the first round, look great, what’s gonna happen next?” Rothwell said. “They came back and we asked, ‘Are we gonna sign a deal?’ They came back and said, ‘Hey, let’s see what happens after this fight.’ … That kind of left the door open for, ‘Go on and win, do great, and that’s it, we’re gonna let you go anyway.’ I didn’t like that, and we asked for our release in February … I think it caught them by surprise if anything. I’ve been with them for 13 years. So they granted it us, and they didn’t have to. I have nothing bad to say.”

Rothwell, who will turn 41 in October, is a well-traveled heavyweight with a 39-14 record compiled in the UFC, International Fight League and other organizations over the course of a pro tenure that began in 2001. He is 9-8 in the Octagon, with his most notable success coming during a four-bout winning streak from 2013 to 2016 that saw him dispatch Brandon Vera, Alistair Overeem, Matt Mitrione and Josh Barnett in succession. His ledger includes other notable wins over the likes of Roy Nelson, Ricco Rodriguez, Brendan Schaub, Stefan Struve and Ovince St. Preux, among others.

Rothwell believes the transition to BKFC makes sense after the organization topped proposals from other promotions.

“BKFC came with the best offer, made me very excited,” Rothwell said “I believe that it’s the place for me because I was doing BKFC long before MMA. It’s something that’s part of my life, something my great grandfather was doing, probably not legally, but had a history of it. It’s something that’s in my blood.”