Mick Terrill is the Grand Daddy of 21st Century Combat Sports [Exclusive]

Terrill speaks to KO on SI on being a grandfather and his BKB return

Mick Terrell is the Grand Daddy of Bare Knuckle Boxing | BKB Bareknuckle Boxing

Former BKB heavyweight champion Mick Terrill heads to Newcastle for a bout with clear implications for the future of the BKB heavyweight title. BKB's first-ever Newcastle event will be at the Utilita Arena Newcastle.

Terrill, 11-2 in bare-knuckle, is a former BKB heavyweight champion who switched his allegiance to BKFC. Now 42, Terrill is looking to have one more heavyweight title run where he started his career in bare-knuckle. He will face Kamil Sokolowski, 3-1 in BKB fights. The experience gap is significant. Terrill has an 11-2 bare-knuckle record and 10 knockouts

“There was a little place in my heart for them, as I used to fight for them, but definitely the money,” the former champion said in an exclusive interview with KO On SI when he explained why he returned to BKB from rival promotion BKFC. This bout will be his second with BKB since his return. He saw off Florian De La Motte in July.

🚨 MAIN EVENT 🚨

Mick Terrill takes on Kamil Sokolowski in his own back yard of Newcastle 🔥

Don't miss BKB 60 live from the Utilita Arena in Newcastle on 10 Oct
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— BKB Bare Knuckle Boxing (@bkbbareknuckle) August 20, 2026

When I joke that his career is turning people’s faces into hamburgers, he smiles. He said he enjoys his career, working hard at the gym and coming home to find his wife has prepared his cup of tea. The two gossip about their children and grandchildren. He currently has one grandchild with two more on the way. He said he loves to take his grandchild to Beamish Museum, an open-air museum located in County Durham, England, where Victorian Britain is recreated. The precise era when bare-knuckle boxing took off as a sport.

When 45-year-old George Foreman knocked out 26-year-old Michael Moorer on November 5, 1994, he regained the heavyweight title he had lost to Muhammad Ali in Zaire in the "Rumble In The Jungle" in 1974. He was also a grandfather. Terrill could become another grandpa world champion if he wins the BKB title against Gustavo Trujillo, “The Cuban Assassin,” an 8-0 bare-knuckle champion who is also 12-0 in pro boxing.

“I want to win the world title. Nobody comes back to be number two, do they? They want to be number one. The plan has always been Trujillo. Get a win in this fight and never look past this fight.”

Terrill is willing to travel for a chance to face Trujillo, despite the fact that he remains a draw in the United Kingdom.

The gloves and wraps come off when Mick fights | BKB

“Either I will go over there, or he will come here. To be fair, he’s got the title so I might go over there.”

Terrill thinks he has put on more muscle as he has aged and remains an explosive fighter. Bare-knuckle is the sprinting of combat sports.

“Bare-knuckle is an older man's game because of the cuts. The young guys don’t want that, and you cannot do it forever.”

Terrill said the best fighters can have a 10-year career, but many will be lucky to have seven or eight due to injuries.

Terrill has said before that he would love a chance to face British cult favorite and former contender Derek Chisora in a fight. Though BKB has attracted some big names from the lower weight classes, it might be a while before the big heavyweights come over.

“The key thing is the media. Once more eyes get more eyes. There will be more money behind it, and that’s how we can get more fighters [in BKB],” he said.