BKFC 79’s Must-See Clashes Saturday Evening in Sturgis

All told, if there are no adjustments made to the schedule on Saturday night, the final version of this weekend’s show will feature a slate of 11 matches.

BKFC 79 Main Event: Vacant BKFC Welterweight Championship: Gorjan Slaveski vs. No. 5 Contender Julian Lane

At the top of the bill on Saturday night, the Vacant BKFC Welterweight Championship will be up for the taking. “GoGo”, Gorjan Slaveski (6-0 bare-knuckle) meets up with fifth-ranked Julian Lane (8-8 bare-knuckle.)

All fights on BKFC 79, main event included, are an advertised length of five rounds at two minutes per round. Slaveski has yet to lose in his career as a bare-knuckle pugilist. Across all competitions, he’s posted a record of 4-1 in his last five fights.

He’s won two fights in succession. Back on Dec. 19, 2024, he was victorious in Karate Combat, scoring a first-round knockout with ground and pound shots over Noah Cutter in just 59 seconds.

“GoGo” hasn’t seen the ring in BKFC in close to two years. He’s kept himself busy in the interim with two wins in a row in Karate Combat. How will his BKFC return go?

Meanwhile, Julian Lane enters BKFC 79’s main event having posted a record of 5-0 over the course of his five most recent fights between bare-knuckle boxing and MMA. Last time out, he bested Cameron VanCamp (2-2 bare-knuckle) by way of fourth-round knockout with an overhand right.

His nickname is “Let Me Bang.” Can he deliver another highlight-reel finish in the BKFC 79 main event?

BKFC 79 Co-Main Event: No. 2 Contender Taylor Starling vs. Shelby Cannon

Immediately beforehand, the BKFC 79 co-main event sees the scene shift to the strawweight ranks. No. 2 contender Taylor Starling (4-4 bare-knuckle) and Shelby Cannon (4-1 bare-knuckle) do battle in this co-headliner. Starling has gone 2-3 in her last five bouts in bare-knuckle and traditional boxing.

At present, she’s lost two fights in a row. Back on Jan. 25 in Philadelphia at KnuckleMania V, she dropped a unanimous decision to Bec Rawlings (3-3 bare-knuckle) after five rounds of action.

This is a crucial fight for the Starling camp. A victory on Saturday night could mean another shot at the BKFC Strawweight Championship in the very near future.

Across the way, Shelby Cannon wants to have a number next to her name in the strawweight rankings after BKFC 79 this weekend. She’s posted a 4-1 record over the course of her last five fights since turning professional in bare-knuckle boxing.

This past spring, she scored a unanimous decision win against Kathryn Paprocki (1-1 bare-knuckle) in BKFC 74, her promotional debut. Although this is only her sophomore appearance under the BKFC promotional banner, she’s fought five times under bare-knuckle rules.

Will she score a resume-building win on Saturday night? Only time will tell.

BKFC 79 Featured Bout: Zach Calmus vs. Corey Willis

Also on BKFC 79’s main card, the featured bout of the evening is in the heavyweight division between Zach Calmus (5-3 bare-knuckle) and Corey Willis (1-0 bare-knuckle). Calmus is currently sporting a 3-2 record in his last five fights between traditional and bare-knuckle boxing.

This past January, he saw his four-fight winning streak in BKFC snapped thanks to a first-round knockout by way of punches from Patrick Brady (2-0 bare-knuckle) in just 53 seconds’ time.

Calmus had been dishing out the knockouts prior to his fight against Brady. In his last winning streak, none of those fights needed to go to a fourth round, so one has to think that he’s hungry to get back to the win column. Expect Calmus to fight with frustration this Saturday in BKFC 79.

In the other corner, Corey Willis will be making the walk for his sophomore appearance in BKFC this weekend. He’s got a record of 3-2 in his last five fights between traditional MMA, bare-knuckle MMA, and bare-knuckle boxing.

This fight is Willis’ third combat sports appearance thus far in 2025. Back in March, he fought in MMA, losing by way of first-round knockout due to strikes versus Brent Campbell (2-0 MMA.) As far as BKFC is concerned, his promotional debut last November in Montana resulted in a first-round knockout of Brady Meister (2-1 bare-knuckle.)

Will he go 2-for-2 in David Feldman’s promotion?

Final Thoughts

Which fight or fights are you looking forward to on BKFC 79 this upcoming weekend?