By Josh Clare BkN UK
Fuck the gloves. I said what I said. And BKB have delivered — again.
If you’ve ever doubted bare-knuckle’s place in the fight game, look at this fight. Paulie “The Magic Man” Malignaggi, two-weight gloved world champion, boxing analyst, and one of the sharpest minds in the sport — is putting it all on the line one more time. And waiting for him? None other than Tyler “El Tornado” Goodjohn, BKB’s outspoken , ring rogue, and chaos merchant rolled into one.
Malignaggi — From Brooklyn to Bristol
Paulie Malignaggi is boxing’s smooth-talking old-school technician. Born in Brooklyn, he made his pro debut back in 2001 and quickly built a reputation for pure boxing IQ — slick footwork, crisp jab, and enough mouth to sell out shows on words alone.
He’s fought the best: Miguel Cotto, Ricky Hatton, Amir Khan, Adrien Broner, Zab Judah, Danny Garcia — the list is ridiculous. He won world titles at super lightweight and welterweight, bagged the IBF and WBA straps, and went the distance with absolute killers despite famously brittle hands that snapped more than they KO’d.
When the gloves were hung up, Paulie didn’t fade away — he went straight into commentary and analyst work, becoming one of the sport’s best voices. But the itch never fully left. In 2019 he dipped into BKFC against Artem Lobov — a fight that turned into a circus but didn’t showthe real Magic Man. Now he’s back. Older, wiser, but still razor sharp. This is a dangerous debut and it’s a proper opponent this time.
Goodjohn — England’s EL TORNADO
Across the Trigon from him stands Tyler Goodjohn — one of the most recognisable faces in modern British bare-knuckle. A former gloved pro with a solid traditional boxing background, Tyler switched to BKB because, in his words, “it’s real fighting.”
He made a name in the UK small hall scene before jumping into bare-knuckle with both fists. Love him or hate him, no one’s neutral — he’s turned up at weigh-ins in fur coats, smoked cigars in the face of world champions, and called out anyone with a pulse and a payday.
He’s fought all over — BKB in the UK, BKFC in America — taking on the likes of Charles Bennett and Felipe Chavez in brutal scraps that left scars on him and legends for the fans. Inside the ropes, Goodjohn is pure chaos: head movement, rough clinch work, filthy body shots, elbows hidden behind hooks — a nightmare to deal with when the fists are bare.
Tyler calls himself “El Tornado” for good reason — he drags opponents into deep, ugly wars where it’s less about pretty boxing and more about who wants to stand up at the end. He’s the type of fighter who could lose every round, then break your nose with a single shot when you think you’ve got him figured out.
A Clash of Worlds
This fight is bigger than just two men scrapping — it’s gloved boxing legacy vs modern bare-knuckle grit. The slick New York technician vs the English chaos merchant. The polished showman vs the tattooed outlaw.
Paulie comes in with decades of top-tier experience and a mind sharper than any jab. Tyler brings rawness, awkward angles, and a gas tank that doesn’t run dry when the gloves are off. Add the Trigon — a ring that forces action, corners you, and turns boxing into survival — and you’ve got a recipe for a scrap that people will talk about for years.
The posters are up. The tickets are shifting. And the fight world will be watching. Because this is the fight that proves bare-knuckle can drag royalty back to where fighting started — two men, two fists, no gloves, no excuses.
Fuck the gloves. I said what I said. The Magic Man vs El Tornado — see you in Bristol.
