BKFC 21 Odds, Picks and Preview – Cochrane vs Richman

• BKFC 21 goes down on Friday, September 10th, 2021 at 8 PM EST
• Who advances higher in the rankings at 175 pounds and heavyweight in the coming days?
• Check out the fight odds, analysis, and predictions below
  

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BKFC 21 transpires at Ralston Arena in Omaha, Nebraska. The broadcast takes place on the Bare Knuckle TV App at BKTVApp.com and on FITE TV pay-per-view.

>> Bet BKFC 21 at SBDPlay <<

In the top of the marquee bout, Dakota Cochrane and Mike Richman clash in a bout with possible title implications for the 175-pound championship. Plus in the co-feature, a heated heavyweight affair between Sam Shewmaker and Josh Burns goes down.

BKFC 21 Odds

Odds as of September 8th

>> Bet BKFC 21 at SBDPlay <<

Dakota Cochrane’s Title Path

Dakota Cochrane is looking towards competitive opportunities for 175-pound gold (held by Thiago Alves) and is one of the higher-ranked contenders in that weight category.

With BKFC hosting their first event in Nebraska, they called up an Omaha hometown hero in Cochrane for the main event.

Cochrane’s pair of finishes bookend his lone bare-knuckle boxing bout to go the distance.

One which came in a unanimous decision victory against cartoonishly durable, veteran UFC knockout artist Chris Leben at BKFC 6.

Mike Richman Looks to Go 2-0 in BKFC

Mike Richman has notched second-round and first-round TKOs in his pair of bare-knuckle boxing outings.

The Marine debuted in bare-knuckle boxing outside the BKFC umbrella and looks for his sophomore win specifically under the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship banner.

He debuted in the BKFC promotion by besting Marcel Stamps who is a former world heavyweight title contender at BKFC 17 in April.

https://twitter.com/bareknucklefc/status/1435673791741534211

I think Cochrane is more proven in some of these drawn-out, sustained pace kind of battles.

Richman stormed onto the scene strongly with an early stoppage. But can he knuckle up and toe the line for a war of attrition over the distance?

BKFC 21 Main Event Tale of the Tape

Ultimately, I think Dakota Cochrane cements himself as the number one contender for BKFC gold with a W here at BKFC 21.

Pick: Dakota Cochrane (-250)

Sam Shewmaker vs Josh Burns

Shewmaker last competed for the BKFC and Police Gazette championships against dual champion Joey Beltran. A losing effort via unanimous decision at BKFC 18.

Despite a pair of bids for world championship glory that did not pan out, Shewmaker is still proven and tested against some of the very best heavyweights in BKFC.

Burns has a ton of bare-knuckle experience across multiple rulesets in both BKB (contending for their world heavyweight title) and BKFC.

He secured a debut win under the BKFC banner over Chris Sarro. But Burns looks to redirect his path after losing to Frank Tate in his last outing at BKFC 17 in April.

The two have been lined up to fight multiple times, with outside circumstances continually intervening. The bad blood and banter have ramped up, with each man looking to take the other’s head off.

Josh Burns on heated Sam Shewmaker bout at #BKFC21 – @bareknucklefc – @DylanBowker has the interview.https://t.co/jcHcRPsVRw

— MyMMANews (@MyMMANews) September 9, 2021

Shewmaker versus Burns pits The Hillybilly Hammer versus The Hammer, and in the end, I favor the latter over the former.

I think Burns presents good underdog value here and could even stop this one inside the distance.

Pick: Josh Burns (+190)

Other Picks for BKFC 21:

1. Houston Alexander vs Wes Combs: UFC veteran Alexander makes his BKFC debut here. Combs is also an MMA fighter who has a marginal edge in bare-knuckle experience having won via DQ at BKFC 9 in November 2019. I think Combs can stun Alexander and notch an underdog W here. Pick: Wes Combs (+150)
2. Ryan Roberts vs Jorge Gonzalez: Ryan Roberts is the hometown guy at BKFC 21 and I think he sends the crowd home happy. I see Roberts winning his BKFC debut, and putting Gonzalez’s BKFC record at 0-2. Pick: Ryan Roberts (-220)
3. Jason High vs Rocky Long: Both are making their BKFC debus but considering their respective MMA records, it makes sense why High is the favorite. There’s just such little value in going with him as a -500 favorite though. There’s just enough parity in bare knuckle boxing competition, and the fact that both are debutants makes me feel justified in an underdog pick here. Pick: Rocky Long (+400)