David Mundell has been involved in combat sports for eight years, but he takes the big stage as the headliner at BKFC 10 against Hector Lombard.
For every boxing and combat superstar like Floyd Mayweather or Conor McGregor, there are hundreds of fighters that compete as professionals while maintaining a typical full-time job to make ends meet. David Mundell fits that description, but he’s now in the main event of BKFC 10 on Saturday, Feb. 15.
Like many in the BKFC (Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship), Mundell started in combat sports in the MMA world, where he compiled a 10-5 record. His road to the BKFC has been unconventional, but he grinds daily to make his dreams a reality.
Mundell found combat sports relatively late in life. He started as a high school football player, but at 5-foot-9 was smaller than many of the other players. He decided to give wrestling a shot.
“I use to play football my whole life, so I was always very active,” Mundell told FanSided. “When I got to high school, I was small compared to all the other football players. My senior year, I decided to take the wrestling coach up on his offer of me wrestling for him. I just fell in love with it from there.”
After wrestling, he discovered Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and then the world of MMA opened up to Mundell. He learned the discipline of striking, and his MMA career was born.
Mundell began his MMA career as a ground fighter but took to the striking aspect.
“Ever since I started getting serious about doing MMA, striking is a big part of it,” stated Mundell. “I don’t cut any corners anywhere. I put a lot of time into my sport, my art. I have a good boxing coach, and he’s a genius when it comes to the striking.”
In the world of MMA, Mundell has won more than he’s lost, but it’s a brutal sport that doesn’t pay as lucratively on the high end as boxing. Paydays for most fighters don’t break the bank and don’t adequately compensate them for their time.
The BKFC is a relatively new organization that’s taking combat sports back to the origins of bare-knuckle boxing. It’s proving to be an attractive promotion for fighters looking for a second act. Mundell has fought twice in the BKFC and knocked out both of his opponents.
He wasn’t supposed to appear at BKFC 10 initially. Joe Riggs was supposed to fight Hector Lombard, but he pulled out of the bout less than a month before the scheduled date. Mundell got the call, and he’s not known for turning down a fight.
“I wasn’t expecting a fight,” said Mundell. “I had just gotten married in November, so I was taking some time off with the family.
“I hadn’t made it back to the gym yet, and coach called me on a Monday morning and asked me about the fight. I just got right back in the gym that night and started training hard.”
Just like that, Mundell is in the main event of BKFC 10 against MMA veteran Lombard. Lombard has a 34-10 record in MMA during a career that has spanned 14 years. He’s such a legend in the sport that Mundell has admired his work for years. It’s a little odd for Mundell to fight one of his MMA heroes.
“Making my idol my enemy,” joked Mundell. ” I grew up watching him. He’s a legend. It’s kind of surreal, finally being put on a stage where I feel I belong facing an opponent like him. I know he’s very dangerous on any given day, but I do believe it’s different when you go from MMA to boxing.”
Fighting is Mundell’s passion, but it comes at a price. He’s successful, but he’s one of the many that has to balance a combat sports career with a day job. While not in the ring or the gym, Mundell puts in eight-hour days as an electrician. He’s also a parent of two children, which any parent can tell you is a job in itself.
“I am a family man,” said Mundell. “I am working a full-time job providing for my family. This is something I love to do. I work my eight-hour days. I come home, go to the gym, lift, go back home. I pick up the kids and spend time with them. Then I’m back in the gym training. I bring them here with me, and we hang out. It’s just an everyday process. We just do it.”
It’s a taxing lifestyle, but one that Mundell loves. He doesn’t have set expectations, and Mundell doesn’t know what tomorrow is going to bring him in the realm of combat sports. Mundell plugs away at it because he loves it. It’s that simple.
” It’s definitely exhausting, but I just enjoy it,” said Mundell. “I just come in here and push hard. It’s not so much a burden because I love it.”
BKFC 10 Lombard vs. Mundell begins at 9 p.m ET on Saturday, Feb. 15. You can order the bout on pay-per-view through FITE.TV.