Luis Palomino continued his undefeated run in bare-knuckle competition with a dominant win over Tyler Goodjohn to defend his featherweight title at BKFC 18.
Now 4-0 under the BKFC banner, Palomino bloodied Goodjohn with volume and a power striking attack that kept the British fighter off balance throughout all five rounds. When the fight was over, Palomino had clearly done more than enough to win as he swept the fight with 50-45 scorecards from all three judges.
Afterwards, Palomino decided to turn his attention to a former foe and “BMF” champion, who he defeated by split decision back in 2010.
“This is satisfaction because I hurt this man,” Palomino said about the fight with Goodjohn. “This man has a history behind him from pro boxing, undefeated in England. He came over here hunting for me. He came here alone. For that, I respect Tyler Goodjohn.
“I want to keep challenging myself. Jorge Masvidal, if you want your rematch … I’ll give you that rematch in a boxing ring.”
Prior to his celebratory call out, Palomino got off to an incredibly fast start in the fight with a barrage of heavy punches while trying to chip away at Goodjohn’s high guard. Palomino was throwing solid combinations with straight punches and big hooks trying to get around his opponent’s defense.
In the clinch, Palomino also connected with a couple of stiff uppercuts that seemingly caught Goodjohn off balance as a cut opened over his eye. In return, Goodjohn finally backed Palomino off with a well-placed straight left that put the featherweight champion on his heels.
While Goodjohn wasn’t backing down, Palomino simply connected with better accuracy and power, including a strong left hand that gave the British fighter problems on repeated occasions. Palomino grabbed onto the back of the neck and unloaded uppercuts that also caught Goodjohn again and again.
Late in the third round, Palomino started to really add up the damage with some thudding shots including a nasty left hook that snapped Goodjohn’s head back.
Despite Goodjohn’s best attempts to claw his way back into the fight, Palomino showcased fast footwork, circling in and out of range and then unleashing fast, hard punches in succession. By the time the fight came to a close after five rounds, Goodjohn’s left eye was an absolute mess but he was still throwing heat until the final bell.
At age 40, Palomino has become one of the faces of BKFC, and while it seems highly unlikely that he’ll see Masvidal standing across the ring from him any time soon, he’s certainly put himself into a position for another big fight whenever he books his return.