Bare Knuckle Boxing is expanding beyond the recruitment of veteran fighters to pluck in-their-prime talents by adding Fernando Vargas Jnr and his unbeaten brother, Amado Vargas, to the roster, BoxingScene has learned.

Less than a year removed from meeting Ireland’s junior-middleweight Callum Walsh in the co-main event to the Terence Crawford-Canelo Alvarez megafight at Las Vegas’ Allegiant Stadium, Vargas Jnr 17-1 (15 KOs) joins his 25-year-old junior-lightweight brother, Amado Vargas 13-0 (6 KOs), to give BKB both an injection of youth and a social-media boost.

“The growth of BKB over the past 12 months has been immense. We’ve signed some of the greatest legends in combat sports. Now, we’re seeing undefeated prospects with world title potential in gloved boxing transition to bare knuckle in their prime – and we’re only going to see more of this,” BKB Bare Knuckle founder Mike Vazquez said in a prepared statement. “I can’t wait to see the Vargas brothers in the trigon.”

The sons of former world champion Fernando Vargas and brothers to Top Rank’s unbeaten 2025 prospect of the year Emiliano Vargas, Fernando Jnr and Amado join a BKB stable that includes former welterweight champion and ProBoxTV analyst Paulie Malignaggi, and recent signees Yuriorkis Gamboa, Lee Selby and Victor Ortiz.

By landing Southern California’s Vargas brothers, who have been featured in a family documentary and have nearly a half-million combined followers on Instagram, a BKB executive said the promotion’s popularity among both combat and everyday sports fans will continue to emerge.

“Signing both Fernando Jnr and Amado is a major addition to our roster,” BKB CEO David Tetreault said. “These are two athletes in their physical prime, hungry for success – and they see BKB as the perfect opportunity to achieve this. BKB is going mainstream and the Vargas brothers will play a huge part in driving us there.”

Fernando Vargas Jnr rode a career-opening 11-fight knockout streak toward the Walsh fight, and Amado, a decorated amateur, has only been past the fourth round in four of his bouts, gaining a 2024 knockout of Sean Garcia, brother of WBC welterweight champion Ryan Garcia.

“My brothers and I are in our prime and we see BKB as the future of combat sports. I’m bringing the same ferocious finishing power that earned me the nickname ‘El Feroz’ – the kind of knockout hunger that can make me a world champion here just like my father,” Fernando Vargas Jnr said. “This is our chance to step up, fight the legends crossing over, and build our own legacy as bare-knuckle icons.”

Amado Vargas added, “We’re ready to make our mark as pioneers in bare knuckle. What I bring is nonstop pressure, sharp combinations, and body work that breaks opponents down. BKB gives us the platform to follow in our dad’s footsteps, face the big names making the jump, and become world-renowned champions together as the Vargas Dynasty.”

With a roster of more than 200 fighters pulled from 30 nations, BKB returns May 16 with Malignaggi challenging reigning BKB welterweight champion Rolando Dy in Manchester, England.

BKB did not immediately announce a date or venue for the Vargas brothers’ debut.