Jeremy Stephens felt like the whole world was against him heading into BKFC KnuckleMania 5 this past Saturday night and it’s tough to argue against his logic.

Despite a deep resume spent competing in promotions like the UFC for the better part of the past 15-plus years, the 38-year-old veteran was almost treated like cannon fodder walking into Philadelphia to do battle with hometown hero Eddie Alvarez. While he embraced his villainous role to promote the event, Stephens had to endure a lot of verbal abuse in the leadup to the fight, which included numerous jabs and insults lobbed his way during a pre-fight press conference on Thursday.

The negativity never seemed to rattle him, but Stephens admits he channeled all that anger and aggression back at Alvarez when they finally set foot in the ring together.

“I had to sit back and don’t think that I let that shit go unnoticed,” Stephens told MMA Fighting. “I told him at the press conference. I go I heard your story about your brittle bitch hands. My hands break jaws. I’m going to break your f*cking jaw, homie.

“To endure all that, to have to sit there and listen to p*ssy [Joe] Pyfer and his f*cking homies and everybody f*cking talking shit, that’s why your friend got his f*cking jaw broken. I hate to be so f*cking authentic but this is a different game. I turned that f*cking pain into f*cking purpose and passion and it’s what I do.”

Stephens definitely heard it from the Philly faithful, which did include some trash talk from UFC middleweight Joe Pyfer, who was there to support Alvarez in the days leading up to the fight.

Add to that, Stephens knew deep down that even the BKFC brass had to be rooting for Alvarez to win because he’s been a star for most of his career, which included championship runs in both the UFC and Bellator.

But rather than allowing the weight of all that to crash down on him, Stephens decided to use it like fuel on a raging fire that he eventually unleashed with a nearly flawless performance against Alvarez to score his third straight win since moving to bare-knuckle fighting.

In the end, Stephens scored two knockdowns and ultimately ended Alvarez’s night after his corner stopped the fight following the third round. Alvarez later revealed that Stephens landed the “kill shot” earlier in the fight with a punch that broke his jaw.

“[Alvarez said] ‘you’re here for the check.’ I said you’re the money man,” Stephens recounted. “You’re making all the f*cking money here. You’re making millions. That’s why it’s easy for you to quit. You quit when you got paid for Conor [McGregor] and he was [shelling up] and all his Philly fans sitting there f*cking gagging on f*cking Conor when he came in. If you come to my hometown, and you f*cking did that to me, hopefully someone’s f*cking snatching your chain.

“To sit back and here him f*cking talk shit and this and that, [used that] to f*cking fortify your mind, and I took that f*cking pain and now I don’t hear him f*cking talking. You can’t. Your jaw’s wired shut.”

Stephens revealed that he got a call from BKFC founder David Feldman telling him about Alvarez’s injury while also issuing a mea culpa of sorts for the way the promotion seeming backed his opponent heading into fight night.

“Feldman called me this morning telling me about it,” Stephens said. “You paid the wrong man. He told me ‘we had our money on him.’ I had everybody go against me. Everybody f*cking doubted me. I’m actually living this life. I’m the f*cking man in the arena.

“I took a risk. I didn’t even sign contracts yet. I didn’t sign with GFL because I’m betting on me. I told them I was certain of it so I had to go break your f*cking jaw. I’m enjoying the fruits of the labor of the f*cking pain I had to bring to him.”

While Stephens has been the underdog many times throughout his career, there was just a different feeling with the magnitude of this particular event, especially with over 17,000 fans packed into the Wells Fargo Center with seemingly all of them rooting for Alvarez.

It didn’t help matters much that Stephens felt like the promotion favored Alvarez but he ultimately proved his point with one of the best performances of his career.

“Who got the last laugh? F*ck all of you,” Stephens shouted. “I told you that at the f*cking weigh-ins when I told you f*ck all you motherf*ckers. I’m going to kill your boy. You motherf*ckers don’t get it. This is a different f*cking game. Now it’s my f*cking turn to f*cking f*ck you up. I f*cking told him. This is my f*cking time, homeboy. I ain’t f*cking playing around. Everybody that f*cking talked shit and doubted me, I’ve been doing it my whole f*cking life.

“65,000 people, f*cking Montreal, Quebec center [when I fought Sam Stout]. Mexico throwing f*cking beer on me [when I fought Yair Rodriguez]. My whole life since I was a f*cking kid I’ve had to endure this shit. Motherf*ckers don’t get it. I bet on me. I broke you. I’ve broken three men in there. The second one’s a f*cking decision, but if you look at it, the dude quit the last 12 seconds. I put my f*cking balls in his face and was staring at him, because I broke him. I broke their f*cking jaw. That’s what I f*cking do. F*ck all you motherf*ckers who doubted me. F*ck all you motherf*ckers. How’s it feel? I broke your boy.”

Stephens won’t ever apologize for getting so fired up, especially after a tumultuous week in Philadelphia where he felt like the whole world was against him.

That said, Stephens promises that he left all his rage in the ring that night and showed Alvarez the respect he deserved once the fight was over.

“Eddie hits hard. Eddie’s there. But it’s my time,” Stephens said. “He’s a f*cking beast. World class. I went over and told him, I said ‘hey bro, I had to sell the fight. Feldman gave me all those lines about Philly anyway. I wasn’t involved in it.’ My true feelings about Eddie, I respect him. I said hey bro, I admire you.

“I’m actually fighting like Eddie, I’m just a better version now. I’m going to have my time. We all are. I’m able to give you authenticity about how I use pain but I have nothing but world class respect for Eddie Alvarez, which is why I f*cking prepared to die. I f*cking fight because I want to live.”

The win undoubtedly puts Stephens in an advantageous position moving forward and he’s very excited to see what comes next.

It’s not all about the money but Stephens hopes there’s monetary appreciation shown for what he’s done thus far in his bare-knuckle career. More than anything, Stephens just wants respect but not because that’s due.

It’s because he’s earned it.

“I want to have these opportunities,” Stephens said. “I want to have these paydays. No one’s earned it more than me. No one’s struggled more than me.

“I have to use that pain on you but that dude’s a f*cking beast and he’s another on a long list of f*cking legends that I mounted on my wall. I’m still doing it. I’m falling in love with the process and I’m getting better.”