Kris Moutinho, remembered by many fans for his fight with Sean O’Malley, has signed with Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) after two separate UFC stints ended with an 0-4 record.
Moutinho’s move was announced on July 30, with his debut opponent and venue already decided. The Massachusetts scrapper, who fought at bantamweight in the UFC, is 15-8 overall, with half his losses coming in the premier MMA organization.
UFC Cast-Off Kris Moutinho to Fight Mike Hernandez at BKFC Mohegan Sun
Moutinho makes his BKFC debut on August 21 at BKFC Fight Night: Uncasville, in Connecticut. He’ll fight Michigan’s Mike Rodriguez, an MMA fighter-turned BKFC fighter with a penchant for knockouts. Rodriguez went 11-4 in MMA, left the sport in 2017, and returned to bare-knuckle in 2025.
Now 40, Rodriguez maintains an even 1-1 BKFC record. Moutinho holds a seven-year age advantage, a two-inch height advantage, and the benefit of being consistently active in professional competition. He has not taken a year off since his amateur MMA debut in February 2013.
When Kris Moutinho Fought Sean O’Malley in the UFC
Moutinho was given so many chances inside the octagon due to two factors: His activity in regional promotions and his three-round beatdown against Sean O’Malley at UFC 264. He filled in on extremely short notice for Louis Smolka, and O’Malley put the work on him from pillar to post.
Despite being outclassed and TKO’d in the third, Moutinho gained fanfare with the fans and UFC execs for his ready-to-die attitude as a +600 underdog in the fight. He was then handed Guido Cannetti, an aged fighter who was 3-7 in his last ten fights, who promptly knocked Moutinho out in the first round.
After Cannetti, the UFC dropped Moutinho. He lost back-to-back performances in professional grappling and boxing, only to go on a five-fight finish streak in MMA, culminating in his invitation back to the UFC.
He was fed straight to the wolves, flattened by a surging Malcolm Wellmaker in the first round, and defeated by decision for the first time in his career by Cristian Quinonez after that. He was released again, found another win in MMA, and now fights Bare Knuckle for the first time.
Who’s Fighting at BKFC Mohegan Sun?
BKFC Uncasville has ten fights so far, subject to change.
- Bryce Henry vs. Carlos Trinidad-Snake; welterweight main
- Cody Vidal vs. Joseph Creer; light heavyweight co-main
- Lardy Navarro vs. Robert Fichtner; bantamweight
- Nathan Ghareeb vs. Nash Diederichs; lightweight
- Jared Lennon vs. Dominick Carey; bantamweight
- Joey Gambino vs. Tommy Strydom; featherweight
- Chris Perreault vs. Joe Powers; light heavyweight
- Alexandra Ballou vs. Sophia Hayes; bantamweight
- Kris Moutinho vs. Mike Hernandez; TBD
- Brandon Bushaw vs. Matt Denning; lightweight
- Isaiah Williams vs. Nate Larocco; welterweight
Moutinho’s fight, like all those on the card, will be two five-minute rounds.
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