Former UFC Standout Aspen Ladd Set for BKB Debut Against Bianca Daimoni

Former UFC and PFL contender Aspen Ladd has found her next challenge, as the longtime MMA veteran is set to make her promotional debut for BKB Bare Knuckle Boxing later this month.

BKB announced that Ladd will face former welterweight title challenger Bianca Daimoni in a super lightweight bout at BKB 58 on Aug. 29 at the James L. Knight Center in Miami, Florida. The matchup adds another recognizable name to the promotion’s growing roster of former major MMA stars.

Ladd, 31, built her reputation competing against many of the world’s top female fighters during runs with Invicta FC, the UFC, Bellator MMA, and the Professional Fighters League. During her UFC tenure, she climbed as high as No. 2 in the women’s bantamweight rankings while earning victories over notable opponents including Sijara Eubanks and Lina Länsberg. She also shared the cage with champions and title contenders such as Kayla Harrison, Germaine de Randamie, and Raquel Pennington.

Although this will be her first appearance inside BKB’s signature Trigon, Ladd is no stranger to bare-knuckle competition. She made a successful debut in the discipline last year, scoring a knockout victory over Shyanne Bitliff in BKFC before deciding to continue her combat sports career with BKB.

Standing across from her will be Bianca Daimoni, a seasoned bare-knuckle competitor looking to spoil Ladd’s promotional debut. The matchup is expected to be one of the featured attractions on a card headlined by undefeated BKB heavyweight champion Gustavo “The Cuban Assassin” Trujillo, who defends his title against Mark O’Neil. Olympic gold medalist Yuriorkis Gamboa is also scheduled to make his bare-knuckle debut on the event.

With an accomplished MMA résumé and experience competing on some of the sport’s biggest stages, Ladd now begins the next chapter of her fighting career in BKB. Fans will find out on Aug. 29 whether the former UFC title contender can continue her success under bare-knuckle rules in Miami. While Cris Cyborg is undefeated in Professional Boxing she will be fighting Aug 22 in PFL MMA before entering Free Agency. Could we see Cris Cyborg inside the BKB ring against Aspen Ladd one day?