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USA Today Sports Media Group

Sport

Nolan King

12 former UFC fighters added to Jorge Masvidal’s Gambred Bareknuckle MMA event

UFC Jorge Masvidal Curtis Millender Jason Knight Roy Nelson Alan Belcher Alex Nicholson Brandon Davis Chase Sherman Francisco Trinaldo

Jorge Masvidal’s Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA is still in its infancy, but the former UFC star continues to attach notoriety to his budding promotion by bringing in notable names.

The next installment of Gambred Bareknuckle MMA takes place Friday, Nov. 10 at Mississippi Coast Coliseum in Biloxi, Miss. and features a dozen (and counting) former UFC fighters, including a former headliner, a “TUF” winner, and more.

Should the promotion keep with the rhythm of its past events, the card will stream live and free on YouTube.

Below, check out which UFC notables of yesteryear are competing on the card:

Alan Belcher

MMA record: 18-8
UFC record: 9-6
Years in UFC: 2006-2013
Gamebred fight: Heavyweight bout vs. Roy Nelson (23-19) – for vacant heavyweight title

Since his UFC departure… Alan Belcher went on an eight-year hiatus from combat sports competition. In 2021, he returned but in boxing. The gloves quickly came off as Belcher went 4-0 in bareknuckle boxing and 1-0 in bareknuckle MMA. He recently departed BKFC and finished influencer Chase DeMoor in an exhibition boxing match.

Randy Costa

MMA record: 7-4
UFC record: 2-4
Years in UFC: 2019-2022
Gamebred fight: Featherweight bout vs. Jason Knight (22-7)

Since his UFC departure… Randy Costa has struggled to find fights on the regional scene. His lone appearance was for Combat FC in June when he finished Carlos Espinosa in Round 1.

Brandon Davis

MMA record: 14-11
UFC record: 2-7
Years in UFC: 2018-2019, 2021-2022
Gamebred fight: 140-pound contract weight vs. Joe Penafiel (11-6)

Since his UFC departure… Brandon Davis is 0-2 in combat sports competition with a (gloved) loss to Joshua Weems and a (bareknuckle) loss to Ago Huskic. Both defeats came by unanimous decision.

Jason Knight

MMA record: 22-7
UFC record: 4-5
Years in UFC: 2016-2018
Gamebred fight: Featherweight vs. Randy Costa (7-4)

Since his UFC departure… Jason Knight is 5-2 in professional combat sports competition. He established himself in bareknuckle boxing despite only two appearances for BKFC. One was a legendary war against Artem Lobov. Most recently, Knight was a cast member of “The Ultimate Fighter 31” where he went 1-1 in exhibition bouts. After a quick submission of Landon Quinones, Knight was finished by Kurt Holobaugh via strikes.

Hector Lombard

MMA record: 34-10-1
UFC record: 3-8
Years in UFC: 2012-2018
Gamebred fight: Light heavyweight vs. Chris Sarro (1-0)

Since his UFC departure… Hector Lombard is 3-1 with a no contest in combat sports competition. Most notably, Lombard earned BKFC gold with a finish of Joe Riggs in June 2021. Lombard most recently competed in a boxing match for OKTAGON in February when he drew with Vlasto Cepo.

Curtis Millender

MMA record: 21-9
UFC record: 3-2
Years in UFC: 2018-2019
Gamebred fight: Middleweight vs. Joel Bauman (7-3)

Since his UFC departure… Curtis Millender went 1-1 for Bellator. He then signed with PFL for its 2021 season. Millender went 0-2 in the regular season, then departed the promotion. Millender is 3-1 in MMA since then with fights for XMMA, UNF, and Unified MMA. Millender also has gone 2-0 in boxing since his UFC stint came to an end.

Roy Nelson

MMA record: 23-19
UFC record: 9-10
Years in UFC: 2009-2017
Gamebred fight: Heavyweight vs. Alan Belcher (18-8)

Since his UFC departure… “Big Country” Roy Nelson competed six times for Bellator where he compiled a 1-5 record. Following his final Bellator fight in August 2020, Nelson took nearly three years away from action. He returned for Gamebred Bareknuckle MMA in May when he knocked out Dillon Cleckler in the event’s headliner.

Alex Nicholson

MMA record: 15-10
UFC record: 1-3
Years in UFC: 2016-2017
Gamebred fight: Heavyweight vs. Dillon Cleckler (11-1)

Since his UFC departure… Alex Nicholson has been all over the place. From LFA to PFL to Gamebred to Titan FC, Nicholson has won and lost, and won again. While he’s coming off a loss to eventual UFC signee Valter Walker in June, Nicholson is undefeated at 3-0 in bareknuckle MMA.

Sasha Palatnikov

MMA record: 8-5
UFC record: 1-2
Years in UFC: 2020-2021
Gamebred fight: Welterweight vs. Francisco Trinaldo (28-9)

Since his UFC departure… Sasha Palatnikov is 2-1 in MMA and 1-2 for Karate Combat. He most recently competed in May when he lost a unanimous decision to legendary striker Raymond Daniels.

Chase Sherman

MMA record: 16-12
UFC record: 4-11
Years in UFC: 2016-2018, 2020-2023
Gamebred fight: Heavyweight vs. Carl Seumanutafa (13-14)

Since his UFC departure… Chase Sherman has yet to compete. He was released in May following an UFC on ABC 4 loss to Karl Williams. Sherman was scheduled to box Matthew Strickland in July but the match was canceled.

Francisco Trinaldo

MMA record: 28-9
UFC record: 18-8
Years in UFC: 2012-2022
Gamebred fight: Welterweight vs. Sasha Palatnikov (8-5)

Since his UFC departure… Francisco Trinaldo has yet to compete. He departed the promotion in January following a loss to Randy Brown in October 2022. The defeat was only his second in his most recent seven fights.

Joshua Weems

MMA record: 11-3
UFC record: 0-1
Years in UFC: 2022
Gamebred fight: Featherweight vs. Ago Huskic (8-6)

Since his UFC departure… Joshua Weems has gone 2-0 with a traditional MMA win over Brandon Davis and a bareknuckle win over Irwin Rivera. Both victories came by unanimous decision.