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Dan Podmore has a massive chance at BKB 59 to add another divisional title to his ledger, but it\u2019s not the one he expected to be fighting for. The ex-BKB bridgerweight champion last beat Jarome Hatch in a bridgerweight title eliminator, but Dan Podmore will clash with the unbeaten Julian Fernandez for Fernandez\u2019s super cruiserweight title.<\/p>\n
This Tijuana bout serves as a hometown title fight for Fernandez, with the two headlining BKB\u2019s first event in Mexico. With localized support from Zanfer, BKB 59 transpires on September 19th in Tijuana, Mexico. The timeline for this fight coming together was a succinct one, and when shining a light upon that, Dan Podmore said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker<\/em>],<\/p>\n \u201cWell I was actually on holiday. I was in Zanzibar, Tanzania. I got a message off Joe [Brown], one of the the directors, English directors, and asked me what I was weighing. I thought maybe they\u2019ve got a bridgerweight fight coming up. So, I sort of like half told him I was a bit heavier than what I was. But I kept the weight down. But yeah, he said, \u201cI\u2019ve got an opportunity for you fighting in Mexico.\u201d I was like, \u201cOh, sweet.\u201d But then, I thought, \u201cOkay, that\u2019s good.\u201d So I thought he was, like I said, he was going to be looking for a bridgeweight fight.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cHe goes, \u201cSo, how do you feel about fighting Julian Fernandez for the Super Cruiser [crown]?\u201d I says, \u201cWell, that sort of weight division\u2019s never been on my radar. Not as of yet anyway. Maybe in the future and stuff, but I had no plans on going down to 90 kilos. But another chance at a world title and being in Mexico, being that it\u2019s the first [BKB] event held in Mexico, I thought, why not?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cLet\u2019s make history again, you know what I mean? So, I thought, yeah, let\u2019s go. I told Joe that I was weighing about 105, 105 kilos, but realized I was about 101. So yeah, we\u2019ve started to come down in weight.\u201d<\/p>\n In terms of possible shifts with dietary considerations or perhaps a different strength and conditioning piece that could be tied toward going down to this super cruiserweight limit, Dan Podmore stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker<\/em>],<\/p>\n \u201cYeah it\u2019s just sorting the diet. Obviously I eat clean anyway. I pride myself on being a professional athlete and stuff. So I tend to stay in shape. Strength and conditioning all stay the same. Like I say, it\u2019s just cutting out sugar and stuff like that. The weight with a bit of hard graft, the weight will fall off, you know what I mean? So, it\u2019s been tough, but it\u2019s coming down.\u201d<\/p>\n While previously touting Mexican fighters are tough but also giving that similar praise to his fellow Birmingham combatants, Dan Podmore quipped [via Bare Knuckle Bowker<\/em>],<\/p>\n \u201cAbsolutely. If I didn\u2019t think I could win, I wouldn\u2019t have taken the fight. You know what I mean? I\u2019m not one of these guys that would accept a fight just to take a bit of money or this that and the other. For a bit of a holiday or whatever it may be. But, I\u2019ve taken this fight. It\u2019s on the basis that I\u2019m going to win. I\u2019m going going over there and I\u2019m going to do my utmost best to go and try to beat this guy. Everybody he\u2019s fought before they\u2019ve half like fell over in the fight, you know what I mean? That\u2019s something that I will not do.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cI think maybe there\u2019s a possibility that this fight was offered to a few more other people and it\u2019s been mad being turned down. They\u2019ve given me six weeks to prepare for this. Like I said, I was on holiday at the time. I was actually sipping a beer when I got the call. As soon as I accepted the fight, the beer went down the drain and we started as a means to go on. But yeah, so I\u2019m under no illusion that there are a lot of people that probably turned this fight down against Julian Fernandez. Cuz he\u2019s a very, very, very, very good opponent.\u201d<\/p>\n With one of the deeper ledgers in bare knuckle history, addressing the skillset of the undefeated champion who has generated all first-round finishes in his bare knuckle efforts so far, Dan Podmore said [via Bare Knuckle Bowker<\/em>],<\/p>\n \u201cLike I said, there\u2019s not much to go on obviously because people haven\u2019t made out the first round with him. Like I said, it\u2019s some of the guys that he fought maybe shouldn\u2019t have been in there with him. They\u2019ve all fell over sort of thing, but the one that surprised me was \u2018The Cuban Crocodile\u2019 fight. [Yordan Fuentes] was supposed to be a tough guy. But then obviously Julian was hitting him in the back of the head, but then he used that to get out the fight. Now for me, he quit.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cHe quit. He didn\u2019t want none of it. So, we\u2019re under no illusion that that\u2019s the way that Julian fights. So, we\u2019re more than ready for it\u2026 He likes to strike in the clinch. So he\u2019ll like hit like this [motions wrapping around the head strikes]. So there could be a lot of back of the head strikes and stuff like that. But we\u2019re, like I said, more than well prepared for that situation.\u201d<\/p>\n When touching on if this fight breaks down in a big way to the experienced and savvy veteran taking on the exuberant young fiery fighter, Dan Podmore stated [via Bare Knuckle Bowker<\/em>],<\/p>\n \u201cYeah, I think my experience alone should be a huge factor in this. It\u2019s going to be experience verse I\u2019m not sure how old Julian is. But I suppose he\u2019s quite youthful. I say it\u2019s going to be the experienced versus the youthful, you know what I mean? So he\u2019s not had many bare knuckles. I know he\u2019s fought pro gloved. I know that he did a bit of that. I\u2019m under no illusion that he\u2019s not fought some good pros as well gloved. But like I said, this is bare knuckle and we\u2019ve not yet seen Julian get hit.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cSo, we can see how that pans out when he\u2019s got me attacking and not just covering up, being there to be hit sort of thing. Because let\u2019s not make no mistake about this. I\u2019m not going there to lose. I\u2019m going there to do my utmost myo best to bring that world title back to Birmingham, be a fifth time. Five time world champion in four different weight classes. That is the goal at the end of this fight now. So yeah, and that\u2019s what dreams are made of.\u201d<\/p>\n With a deep resume that features BKB heavyweight, bridgerweight, and cruiserweight accolades, when touching upon the crowded nature of his mantel place these days, Dan Podmore quipped [via Bare Knuckle Bowker<\/em>],<\/p>\n \u201cYou know what, like I said, it\u2019s all stories to tell the grandchildren, and tell the kids and stuff. I\u2019ve done more than any one man should do in his career sort of thing. You know what I mean? I\u2019ve achieved a lot but like I said I\u2019m still not done. I haven\u2019t finished. You know what I\u2019m saying? I still feel amazing. I still feel a million dollars. I still feel good training. I still could take a shot. So yeah, we\u2019re going to see how this one goes. Like I said, Super Cruiserweight wasn\u2019t on the agenda.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cSeen as on my last fight against Jarome Hatch, I thought that was the number one contender spot for the Marko [Martinjak] fight, the Marko rematch. Like I said, this is just like out of the blue, shot in the dark, you know what I mean? They\u2019v offered it to me. I\u2019ve accepted. So, it\u2019s like a new test. It\u2019s a new test. That\u2019s what I like about it.\u201d <\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s the unknown. You know what I mean? I want to go and test myself again to the extremes of pushing my bodies to the limit and see how we come out in the end. That\u2019s what I\u2019m about. That\u2019s why I\u2019m in the sport. This is why I fight the guys that are best in the world. That\u2019s basically it.\u201d<\/p>\nDan Podmore blasts yordan fuentes, touts Fernandez\u2019s skills, and the importance of family<\/h2>\n