Nico Gaffie, from a poor neighbourhood to the elite of bare-knuckle boxing

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Born in Colonia El Angel, Marbella, the 29-year-old is a European champion and third in the world featherweight ranking

Marina Rivas

Thursday, 22 January 2026, 11:58

The sporting world thrives on stories like Nico Gaffie's. In fact, they are almost a cliche. The examples of resilience - athletes who, regardless of the lack of money in their families or neighborhoods, never lacked dedication or commitment.

These are the people who visualised their dreams clearly, refused to surrender until they achieved them, and, perhaps most importantly, never abandoned their roots once they reached the top.

Nico Gaffie is currently a global sensation in a combat sport that promises to grow exponentially in the coming years. Following a great 2025, this 29-year-old native of Marbella stands as the European Bare Knuckle Boxing Champion and holds the number three spot in the featherweight world rankings of the discipline's premier franchise, the BKFC (Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship).

But it wasn't always a bed of roses. Both Gaffie and his father were born in Marbella, although his paternal grandparents are of French origin. His maternal branch is gypsy, a heritage he highlights with pride, noting that he belongs to the Fernández family, one of Marbella's longest-standing Romani families.

He grew up and still lives in one of the most austere neighbourhoods in Marbella, Colonia El Ángel, of which he says "it's a marginal neighbourhood, but it's not bad, it's for humble people".

Although Nico never had an easy life, he never lacked the most important thing, the support of his family. His sporting career began with football, although it was never his passion. He found that in contact sports, motivated by the fights he had seen on television since he was a child.

For years, he combined kickboxing with boxing, but it was in the former that hich he took his first big steps. At the age of 16 he stopped studying and focused on professional kickboxing, becoming Andalusian, Spanish and intercontinental professional champion. However, as he couldn't make a living from it, he always combined his sporting career with any kind of job he could find.

He gave private kickboxing lessons, worked as a security guard, bricklayer, air conditioning technician and gardener. In fact, he is currently on leave from his gardening company, because just over a year ago, his life changed completely.

In mid 2024, he hit a personal slump. Gaffi couldn't find himself: he was spending eight hours a day at his job as a gardener, teaching some classes and spending time with his family, which pushed him to put competition on the back burner. He did not feel complete.

Then, as a man of deep faith, God sent him an opportunity that would end up changing his life and giving him back the happiness he thought he had lost. Although, in reality, this opportunity was also sought by him.

He learned that the world's largest bare-knuckle boxing franchise (rules similar to boxing, but without the use of gloves and with five two-minute rounds), would hold an evening in Marbella, in October 2024. The BKFC, founded in the US in 2018, had recently exploded in popularity, partly due to the involvement of superstar Conor McGregor as a co-owner.

Initiating change

"My manager had contacts and I asked him if he could find a place for me to compete in that event. He did it, I spent three months training hard for it and I won. I was going through a very bad time at the time, with separation proceedings... And the fight was an incredible experience, it gave me back the desire to fight", recalls Gaffie.

After this fight he fought two more, in Dubai, in April 2025, against the number one at the time, Brandon Allen, and the last one, in October in Rome, against Jelle Zeegers. He won both of them by knockout within two minutes of the fight, the last of these being the most special of all, as it gave him his first big belt in the BKFC, the one that made him no less than European champion.

"My life has changed immensely. Between sponsorships and fights, I can now say I live professionally from the sport. It’s incredible - the comfort of not having to juggle this with a separate job is huge, and my visibility has grown so much," the Malagueño admits, now more motivated than ever. "I didn't imagine such a big change. If I have to retire someday, just experiencing this has made it all worth it."

But professionalism has not changed his outlook on life. He continues to live in his neighbourhood, involved as ever with the neighbourhood, for example, giving free classes to local children, in order to convey an important message to them.

He explained: "I tell them not to waste their time with unnecessary friendships and things that are not going to do them or their families any good. I tell them to focus on their dreams and fight for them, to be clear that the real support and motivation you have to find for yourself, your own determination is the key to achieving it.