Dustin Pague was ready to fight at KnuckleMania V.
Unfortunately, an issue with his opponent’s medicals at the 11th hour left Pague without a dance partner for the biggest event in bare knuckle fighting history. The opponent-less Pague ended up taking in the show from the stands as one of the more than 17,000 fans in attendance at the sold-out Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
“BKFC gave us really good tickets to the event for myself, my wife and my friends. We got to enjoy the fights, so it was a fun weekend,” he says.
“But what hurt the most was sitting in the packed arena when the fights started. ‘This should’ve been me, guys!’ But we just keep moving forward.”
Mercifully, Pague was rebooked within a day or two of his KnuckleMania matchup being scrapped. The Carlisle, PA welterweight now meets Andrew Angelcor in the Main Event of BKFC’s second night of action in Philadelphia, BKFC Fight Night: Philly on March 21 at the famed 2300 Arena, LIVE worldwide on The BKFC App.
“I’m very excited,” Pague says with a smile.
“I love the Philly fans. They’re loud and crazy. The venue is going to be rocking. It’s always a little more fun to fight for your home state.”
Pague isn’t looking past his assignment in Philadelphia, but he has big goals for his BKFC career in 2025.
“I’m focused on Angelcor right now, but my longer-term goal is to string together a couple more wins after that, and then I should be right back in line for a title shot.”
