Scott McHugh looks to become a six-time BKB champion on Saturday against the first Filipino bare-knuckle champion ever. ‘The Mute’ will battle for the BKB super welterweight championship on October 10th, which Rolando Dy currently holds. McHugh looks to claim that throne in the main event of BKB 60 at the promotion’s inaugural card in Newcastle.
With McHugh’s prior BKB titles being in the promotion’s older square ring, when asked if getting to win his first BKB belt in the Trigon-specific environment bolstered his resume in any kind of unique way, McHugh said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Yeah, it’s not really no different to me in there, it’s all the same. Obviously clinch, I’m good in the clinch. I’ve got footwork. I’ve got it all. It suits me that triangle. People forget what I’ve got in a background. I’ve got my [Muay] Thai boxing. I’ve done MMA. I’ve done it all, you know. So, this is no different to me and it suits me better. I’m ready for anything. So, just another day in the office for me this fight. He’s a tough kid, but we’ll see. We’ll see what he’s [got when he’s] in the trenches with me.”
Referencing some of the similarities in the paths taken between himself and Dy through the latter fighting in the UFC and battles in Thailand, McHugh stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Very similar, especially with our backgrounds and that. Obviously, he’s been in the UFC. I’ve had quite a lot of fights as well, do you know what I mean? So, I’ve not just done bare knuckle, I’ve done K1, [Muay] Thai boxing, I’ve done MMA, I’ve done hybrid, do you know what I mean? So, I’ve done quite a lot of glove fights and I’ve actually never been beaten in gloves, believe it or not. Think I’m 19 wins, one draw in gloves like in the boxing gloves, hybrid boxing. I’ve been about the block like [laughs].”
When it was mentioned that perhaps some forget about his broader combat sports pedigree because he has one of the deeper resumes of the modern era of bare-knuckle boxing, McHugh quipped [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Yeah, Exactly. Like people think oh MMA background, brings this and that. Listen it’s bare knuckle boxing. If you know how to fight bare knuckle and you know how to clinch and you know all that stuff, you’ve got no issues in this game. Do you know what I mean? But with me, I’ve had a lot of bare knuckle fights and I know I’m very wise. I’m a very wise man. I can read shots coming. Well, you say that, don’t you? But it’s bare knuckle, man. I’ve been in this a long time. Nearly 10 years, so this fight is nothing new to me. Do you know what I mean? I’ve got no pressure on me. I’ve been there, done that, but this time I’m there. Do you know what I mean? I’m coming. I’m coming and I’m confident and I’m ready. Rolando [Dy], man, he’s a good kid. I like Rolando and I know what he’s about. Yeah, I’ve got respect for him and he’s got respect for me, man… I can’t let it go to the judges, mate. I’m not saying that but with him being a world champion, I’ve got to take that from him. So I mean I’m not saying what’s going to happen and that. But I’ve got a plan and that plan hopefully will go well.”
BKB 60
Speaking to the mindset piece of how this fight is being approached, McHugh said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“We’ve both got the same mindset. He’s there to finish me. I’m there to finish him. He’s thinking, “Oh, I’m the homeboy or whatever.” England boy, they’re going to give me if it goes to judges, mate. So, it can’t go to the judges either way. From his point of view or my point of view. Do you know what I mean? That’s just how I see it. I’ve been here a long time, and I know the score. So, yeah, it’s going to be; I’m not going to say, but you’ll see. It’s going to be a good one. It’s going to be a good one. I love Rolando. Do you know what I mean? We get along. After this fight, we’ve even planned we’re going to go fishing in; I won’t mind going over to the Philippines as well… I’ve been to Thailand. But I want to go to the Philippines. So if he’s watching this, I hope you welcome me after this fight and we’ll go fishing [laughs].”
With Dy appearing on another BTB episode pre-Newcastle, responding to the seemingly evident mutual respect between the BKB 60 main event stars, McHugh stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Listen, we’re both in there to do a job. We’re both in there, knock each other out, then we’ll shake hands after. There’ll always be respect there. But obviously when when we get in there, it all goes, you know what I mean? We’re both there to fight. We’re both there to win. So, we’ll see. We’ll see all the doggies on the night, you know? See who’s got that dog in them and who’s who.”
Referencing his nickname ‘The Mute’ which references how he does all of his talking in the ring, McHugh quipped [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Yeah, I don’t; listen, like I said, I don’t bad badmouth people, predictions. It’s until you get smacked in face first and you don’t have no predictions. But I’m confident, I’m very confident in what my abilities are and what I’ve trained for over the past years. I’ve just got better and better. So yeah, I don’t go talking s**t because I know this sport is a brutal game. You can’t go talking s**t to people. Do you know what I mean?”
BKB Newcastle
Touching on the parity in the weight division (whereby Liam Rees beat McHugh and Rees dropped gold to Dy, in a conext where McHugh has multiple wins over Martin Reffell who has a win over Dy) McHugh said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Styles make fights, you know what I mean?.. Liam Rees but again, back then, I didn’t know about how to do the water cut and stuff like that. I was 70 kilo on that day. 71 the max. He did a big cut and he were a bigger lad than me and he caught me. I got carried away. I was in my home crowd. I wanted to please the crowd and I got caught and I missed the count. It did knock me out. I missed the count, I’d have got back up and carried on. So unless you clean me out in that ring, put me unconscious, I’ll be there till the very last bell.”
When asked if shifting from the old guard BKB’s style of day-of weigh ins toward the current day before weigh ins was one of his bigger adjustment curves in recent years, McHugh stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Yeah. Well, again I didn’t know. I used to have to back then because it was same day, you couldn’t diet and that. But now I’ve got like a professional nutritionist now who does MMA fighters, UFC fighters, all that. I’ve got it all to a tee on this one. So yeah, I can do. I’m doing the; I’m not going to give too much information, but yeah, there’s different things now. I’ve got a very, very good team around me. So yeah, man, I’m all good to go.”
Addressing the multiple tendrils of fight IQ that come from his vast depth of experience withing the game of gloveless combat, McHugh quipped [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Yeah, definitely. Like obviously the buildup and that, you’ve got to say stuff on camera, you’re going to do this and that. It’s part of selling the fight, but, again, I’ve been in this this sport a long time and I’m a very wise man in it. Do you know what I mean?”
Scott McHugh blasts “s**thouses” in combat sports who slag off bare-knuckle boxing
Within the trope of iron sharpens iron, when referencing some past work with names like Jimmy Sweeney, Rico Franco, James Connelly (who are some real elite pedigreed guys in this modern era), McHugh said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Yeah, like we’ve been about [James] Connelly, [Jimmy] Sweeney. Yeah, we’re all still active. We all started. Well, Jimmy started a long time before me, but I’m one of; I wouldn’t say the originals, but you know, I’m up there. I’m still here. I think it’s only me and Connelly and Marko [Martinjak] are the only; and [Dan] Podmore probably the only ones left who are fighting in the Trigon. Do you know what I mean? But again, it’s it’s good that Trigon. I like it. You can have a fight and it brings a dog out in you.”
Responding to the rhetoric from some outsider combat sports athletes who say there is no longevity in the game of bare knuckle, McHugh said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“‘A lot of s**thouses who are all scared of the sport. That’s what it is or wouldn’t dare to do it. Slagging it off. That’s slagging it off. You know why? Cuz they haven’t done it this, so. Cuz you ain’t got balls to do it.”
After quipping about how the longevity element comes down to one’s individual approach to this particular fighting modality, McHugh stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“You’ll get more scars. Like I’ve got a lot of scars, you know what I mean? But like with gloves, it’s more damage because you’re taking a lot more shots. You’ll get hit with a clean shot in bare knuckle, it’s either lights out or you’re cut.”
When asked if he is seeing particular holes he can exploit within Dy’s game this weekend’s bout or if it’s more about feeling supremely sharp within his own skillset, McHugh quipped [via Bare Knuckle Bowker],
“Just confidence, mate. Like listen, I’m not saying too much, you know? I know my capability and I know what round and do you know what I mean? I just; I’m ready anyway. He’s ready for me. He’ll probably; he’s probably thinking, “Oh, he’s going to have to knock me out.” But you’re going to have to use a sledgehammer to knock me out. But time will tell, won’t it? We see who’s got the best chin in there and I’ve got a good chin.”
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