Did Luke Rockhold quit against Mike Perry because of teeth injury? BKFC president David Feldman sheds light
Luke Rockhold and Mike Perry headlined BKFC 41 in an all-UFC affair as they clashed in a light heavyweight bout. Perry came out on top but the fight ended prematurely after Rockhold seemingly gestured at his teeth, indicating that he had broken or injured them.
BKFC president David Feldman was asked to clarify if Rockhold had suffered an injury to his teeth and he responded in the affirmative:
“Luke Rockhold got- some of his teeth got cracked. So that’s why he wasn’t able to continue in case a lot of people were worried. His teeth got messed up pretty good. And what a great start to that fight, right?”
Check out Feldman's comments below:
David Feldman says some of Rockhold's teeth got cracked. https://t.co/X80a2wtQxL
Feldman also praised the start to the main event fight by the two fighters. 'Platinum' Perry got off to a great start with a flurry of strikes and maintained the momentum through the first round. However, it was the former UFC middleweight champion who landed the most powerful strike of the first round and nearly had Perry reeling backwards.
Check out Rockhold's big left hand at the end of the first round:
Luke Rockhold and Mike Perry exchange big punches at the end of the first!
#BKFC41 | LIVE on #FITE https://t.co/7RGVl7yei8
In the subsequent round, Rockhold himself gestured towards his jaw and spoke with the referee to call off the fight. Perry extended his winning record in BKFC to three fights and handed Rockhold a debut loss.
Aljamain Sterling and pros react to Luke Rockhold's teeth and BKFC 41 main event
Luke Rockhold suffered a lot of damage to his jaw at the hands of Mike Perry, especially in the second round. His jaw situation did not go unnoticed as former UFC colleagues watching on commented on it.
Bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling tweeted about it:
"Did he knock a tooth out?!?!"
Check out Aljamain Sterling's tweet below:
Did he knock a tooth out?!?!
Other pros applauded Mike Perry's performance and also vouched for BKFC's entertainment factor:
"Bare Knuckle Freaking Circus. That was wild [head exploding emoji]"
Bare Knuckle Freaking Circus. That was wild 🤯
"Mike perry is a dog"
Mike perry is a dog
Rockhold's jaw did not take well to the first-time BKFC experience as close-up pictures revealed breakage and displacement all over.
Luke Rockhold’s teeth after the TKO at BKFC 41 https://t.co/nzmEhg5ncG
The final flurry of strikes from Perry may have worsened it for Rockhold. Additionally, the shorter Perry may have crashed his head into Rockhold's jaw when the two were in close proximity or clinching.
Check out the closing exchange between the two at the BKFC 41 main event and Luke Rockhold's indication of his injured jaw:
Mike Perry stops Luke Rockhold https://t.co/CtnQLje5Hd