March 2025
February 2025
Fighters Only’s Adam Newby ponders the post-UFC pathways fighters take and interviews Bare-Knuckle fighter Cody East to find the unexpected answers
Cody East’s latest Bare-Knuckle bout left the air thick with a bloody mist that hung above the red footprints etched into the canvas. The scenes perfectly described the tale of the tape that left fans screaming for more. What started with Free-Style Fighting has evolved into modern-day MMA, but it’s not finished adapting. There’s Bare-Knuckle Boxing, Karate Combat, and even Power Slap. These shifts in the sport have opened doors for MMA athletes to compete in disciplines that were off-limits less than a decade ago because they didn’t exist. To gain insights into how the fighters view these options, we caught up with Cody ‘The Freight Train’ East, a seasoned fighter who has competed in the UFC, Muay Thai, Kickboxing, and traditional boxing.
A NEW BREED OF ATHLETE
His experience and success in multiple combat sports, including being the 2x Peak Fighting Champion, former 2x Legacy Fighting Champion, and former King of The Cage Champion, have prepared him for his next challenge: Bare-Knuckle Boxing. Currently 2-0 in the heavyweight division, his most recent Bare-Knuckle war in January 2025 against Dylan Rush was stopped before the fourth round. Cody was awarded a TKO victory in one of the promotion’s bloodiest, action-packed fights that earned him a Fight of the Night bonus and a potential Fight of the Year award, especially after footage of it circulated online.
“They posted a video of a Bare-Knuckle fight that took place this weekend, and it was horrible,” said Rogan, referring to the bout. “This guy's face (referring to Cody East) was just a tomato, just one BIG red wound, his whole face, and he was STILL fighting. This fight was CRAZY!”
But how easy or difficult is the transition from MMA to an entirely new combat sport with new rules, weight classes, and, more importantly, new opponents? Fighters Only caught up with East to answer our questions about the contrasts between MMA and Bare-Knuckle Boxing.
What do you think about Bare-Knuckle as a combat sport?
Although considered a combat sport, Bare-Knuckle Boxing is the closest a fighting man or woman can legally get to inflict as much pain on one another in the most damaging way possible, in as little time as possible, in front of a paying crowd who demand to see pure gratuitous violence and nothing less. Taking into account that this sport was initially utilized to settle feuds, not score points. You don’t play bare-knuckle. It is as real as it gets. It is the perfect platform, an excellent twilight to the end of a varied fighting career. As violent as bare-knuckle is, the fans need to know that I am not stepping inside the Trigon to hurt people, and that’s it. Bare-knuckle is a release outlet for my past traumas of living a hard life in a complex world. Hurting people is just a part of the process. I do it to test my will and heart and push myself outside the norm and the popular.
In contrast, when I competed as an MMA fighter in the early 2000s, you would be looked at as if you were crazy. Now, everyone has a friend or family member who is an MMA fighter. Everyone trains MMA or claims to, but you don’t have people who aren’t real fighters claiming to be a bare-knuckle fighter. It’s primal. It’s real. It’s like the forbidden fruit. Only a select few men and women will truly put it all on the line, and for someone willing to do precisely that, the world of bare-knuckle is the place for you. It’s the best way to see how bad you are, how big your heart is, what you are willing to go through, and what you can take.
How does it feel to compete on a different platform in BYB’s Trigon, the smallest combative surface?
I stopped getting nervous a while ago. Having competed in so many fights in various combat sports, it began to be just another day at the office. I have sparred countless rounds with gloves, so taking the gloves off is fresh. It’s new and scary. And I love the thrill of bare-knuckle as much as I loved the feeling I got when I first competed in combat sports many years ago. In a way, it's just as satisfying. Anyone fighting bare-knuckle at the highest level and saying they don’t feel nervous or apprehensive when stepping through the ropes is telling lies. The reality is that this is the bloodiest sport in the world, and getting your face cut open is pretty much a guarantee; when your vision turns red, it's genuinely frightening.
What is it like to transition between MMA and Bare-Knuckle?
The transition is easy for real fighters, not for athletes who fight. There is a difference. A good boxing athlete can make it ugly and turn it into a fight, not a boxing match. I found it easy, no longer having to overthink things. You fight using your fists, the only tangible defense other than biting a human. In terms of pure action and entertainment, the other stuff, such as BJJ and wrestling, isn’t as pleasing to the eye when all the crowd want to see is a person get smashed to pieces in the most violent way possible. Bone-on-bone is as damaging as it gets. Having the gloves off is difficult because one jab can stop the fight. You can’t eat ten jabs with bare knuckles like you can in boxing. You must be a lot more elusive, in and out, and try to take as minimal damage as possible, not that it ever works out that way fighting with bare knuckles because it is so easy to get cut, and one cut could potentially stop the fight.
What are the most significant differences you noticed between this and the MMA promotions you have competed for?
The most significant difference between the BYB as a Bare-Knuckle promotion and competing within the world of professional MMA, in general, is the lack of treatment and respect within the latter. Whether you win, lose, or draw in BYB, you must have heart. And BYB appreciates every drop of blood you sacrifice for the fans. All the behind-the-scenes stuff within BYB is fair, and nothing is hidden, unlike MMA, where you feel entirely devalued, like you are not getting your worth. There is zero transparency within MMA. I have fought for top-level MMA promotions and top-level Bare-Knuckle Boxing promotions, and with BYB, I can safely say that I feel a part of the BYB family.
Is there any difference between the fans at MMA and Bare-Knuckle Boxing events?
There is no noticeable difference between the fans. All combative sports fans, Boxing, etc., come for the violence. The difference is you will never leave a BYB event unsatisfied. Your thirst for competition, blood, and violence will be quenched every time, unlike MMA. Many times, it leaves fans wanting more, being hyped for a fight, and getting nothing more than a grappling match. No fight fans come to see a glorified sparring session with nothing but technique, standing about, running around, etc. People want to see you leave it all out there. You have no choice when fighting in the Trigon. Most significant platforms in combat sports and other organizations within bare-knuckle will say they are as real as it gets, but BYB stands at the top of being as real as it gets, and the fans know that.
Is there anything different regarding preparing for an MMA and a Bare-Knuckle bout?
There is no difference in food prep. Healthy is healthy. The difference is that BYB has many more weight classes, so guys can compete at their best and not have to shrink down or bulk up to an unnatural size. There are weight categories to suit all. I have felt more prepared and fresher when in camp for a bare-knuckle fight than I ever have with MMA because I am preparing for a stand-up battle with clinching allowed, so the physical preparation isn’t as taxing on the body for bare-knuckle as it is with MMA.
Would you say there is any difference in terms of management?
I think it is easier to manage a fighter for Bare-Knuckle. You don’t need to bring in a specialist in wrestling, jujitsu, etc. You don’t need to avoid matchups because your fighter is a good striker but can’t stop takedowns, or their ground game is weak. It’s a fight every time. Unlike in MMA, there are no tune-up fights or easy fights in Bare-Knuckle. I have one of the best managers in the game, Dr. Jeffery Chavez, the President of Jackson Wink Worldwide Sports Management, who has come from a professional boxing background and puts a lot of time into my career.
What is the most significant difference between an MMA fighter and a Bare-Knuckle boxer?
It's not a case of a fighter being a fighter regardless of the style. A great MMA athlete usually will fail at Bare-Knuckle. They have reached their peak in their desired sport, and as much as they believe they are still at the top of their game, they aren’t and think they can utilize bare-knuckle as a retirement home for MMA athletes like it will be some easy ride for them. They quickly realize that this isn’t the case, and what may have been their peak in MMA is nowhere near as challenging as Bare-Knuckle is. This has been proven by how many former MMA fighters have transitioned over to Bare-Knuckle Boxing and failed. The ones you read about who are doing well are only a small amount of the fighters who try Bare-Knuckle and realize it's not for them. When they realize that they are in a pure stand-up fight of the most violent form and can’t use their wrestling, elbows, kicks, and knees as a form of defense, that’s when you see the real testament of that person. They will either embrace the grind or crumble and fall.
Who do you want to thank?
I want to thank my wife Karla for pushing me to become the man I am today and my kids Maximus, Leah, Janessa, and Alyssa for motivating me to go to war and never quit, no matter how bad things may look. I want to thank Jesus Christ, my lord and Savior, for allowing me to chase my dreams regardless of how my Bare-Knuckle career goes. I’m a champion in life, and the belts are icing on the cake.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR CODY?
Cody plans to be a multiple-division champion in the 265lb and 225lb weight classes. He says that once he has those belts, he will look at becoming a super heavyweight, ultimately a three-division champion. He could also go for the light heavyweight title. Suppose his goals are achieved in becoming a multiple-division champion in Bare-Knuckle Boxing. In that case, Cody will make history and become one of the most brutal, formidable, and honorable men ever to do it.
