Vince McMahon recently made a play to purchase the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship [BKFC], and the promotion’s founder David Feldman has issued a statement.
Following McMahon’s controversial exit from WWE in January 2024, which saw the former Chairman resign after being accused of sexual assault and trafficking by former employee Janel Grant, few expected McMahon to simply vanish from the combat sports world.
With McMahon selling off a large chunk of his TKO shares, netting in excess of $1 billion in the process, it has been widely speculated that he was looking to start up his own promotion or purchase an existing one. In late May, McMahon launched the company 14th & I, which was reportedly said to focus on sports, media and entertainment.
Although the upstart has not made any major announcements or purchases, there has been an update regarding a meeting with BKFC, where McMahon looked to purchase a “controlling interest.” While speaking with Justin Barrasso of Unsdisputed, BKFC founder Feldman stated that Vince McMahon was prepared to do business, but noted that the timing was not right:
“He’s a great guy, his whole team is great, but the timing wasn’t right for us,” said Feldman, who was not willing to relinquish full control of BKFC. “He’s Vince McMahon–if I were him, I’d want creative control, too. He was awesome, very complimentary, and he was very serious to do business.”
The Grant lawsuit against McMahon remains ongoing, along with a separate lawsuit filed against Vince and Linda McMahon by the survivors of the ring boy scandal. The ring boy lawsuit alleges that multiple underage boys were sexually abused and that the McMahons and WWE were aware but did nothing to prevent it.
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship was founded in 2018 and sees fighters face off in bare-knuckle boxing matches. 125 events have taken place at the time of writing, with former UFC fighters Paige VanZant and Mike Perry being 2 of the more notable competitors.
Vince McMahon Has Made Multiple Public Appearances In 2025
As the lawsuits remain ongoing at the time of writing, McMahon has since been spotted at multiple high-profile sporting events. Along with an appearance at the SuperBowl, fans also saw McMahon at an NBA game.
Featured image: WWE
