Why a world champion boxer has gone bareknuckle

Why a world champion boxer has gone bareknuckleImage source, Getty ImagesImage caption, Lee Selby became Wales' 12th boxing world champion when he beat Evgeny Gradovich for the IBF featherweight title in 2015ByChris WathanBBC Sport WalesPublished2 minutes agoCommentsLee Selby knows the risks, knows the danger.He's already been in the corner for one fight, so knows all too well that bareknuckle boxing is fast becoming as popular as it is brutal.But he also knows his own worth."They offered a great amount of money, which I declined," Selby tells BBC Sport Wales."Then they offered more money, which I declined again, and finally they offered me enough to make me say yes."I'm a prizefighter. I've fought my whole life. The prize is money. If the money's right, I'll fight."It's a similar case for his brother and former British flyweight champion, Andrew Selby, who has himself reached a multi-fight agreement to compete in the sport.How safe is bare-knuckle boxing as it fights for mainstream appeal?Published20 FebruaryGloves Are Off: The Rise of Bare-Knuckle BoxingAttributioniPlayerSimple maths, in many ways.The sums clearly add up, too, for promoters BKB whose bid to try and take bareknuckle boxing mainstream will have been boosted by securing a four-fight deal for the 39-year-old former IBF featherweight champion, four years after he hung up the gloves.Barry-based Selby is not the first former world title winner to make the same switch. IBF super-middleweight and 2012 Olympic gold medal winner James de Gale has previously fought on a different promotion.In July, former WBC welterweight champ – and former Floyd Mayweather opponent turned Hollywood actor – Victor Oritz will headline a BKB bill in Los Angeles.By then, 39-year-old Selby will know a little bit more about what he has let himself in for with his BKB debut against Italy's Antonio Rizzo scheduled for 26 June in Cardiff.Bareknuckle boxing is on the ris...