"I think Jon Jones is intrigued by it" - Mike Perry interested in a cross-promotion bare-knuckle fight with UFC fighters
Bare Knuckle FC fighter Mike Perry has revealed that he would be keen on a cross-promotion bare-knuckle fight with fighters from the UFC.
In an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, Perry stated that many fighters are willing to compete in bare-knuckle fights, while referring to Michael Page and also Bellator for allowing Michael 'Venom' Page to compete in BKFC:
"If he's [Michael Venom Page] going back to Bellator, if he has that opportunity or whatever, if these companies are doing this, I don't see why the big organizations wouldn't want to do this and make this happen... The thing about being a real fighter and then you got gloves on, my whole career I got gloves on, and then I was like this bare-knuckle stuff was like a real fight. I know some real fighters who were intrigued by it. I think Jon Jones was intrigued by it. I saw that video of him hitting mitts bare-knuckle and he just loves to fight and so do I."
Watch Mike Perry on The MMA Hour below:
Perry stated his intentions to fight WBA, IBF, WBO and IBO boxing champion Oleksandr Usyk and boxing legend Mike Tyson. Perry also added that he has faced professional boxers in the past and beaten them.
Former UFC fighters like Paige VanZant and Artem Lobov have made similar moves, jumping from the UFC to BKFC.
Following her exit from the UFC in 2020, VanZant inked a lucrative contract to join BKFC to start her bare-knuckle fighting career. She recently signed a long-term deal with All Elite Wrestling to begin her journey in professional wrestling. Lobov, meanwhile, left the UFC and joined BKFC. After a three-fight stint in his new promotion, he signed for Bellator to return to the world of MMA.
Former UFC welterweight Mike Perry has been impressive since leaving the promotion last October. He picked up a victory over Michael Seals at the inaugural Triad Combat event followed by a win against Julian Lane on his BKFC debut. In his most recent fight last week, Perry defeated Michael 'Venom' Page at BKFC 27 in OVO Arena Wembley in London.
Mike Perry explains why Jake Paul would be a perfect opponent for him
Mike Perry delivered his take on why Jake Paul would be a suitable opponent in his next fight. The 30-year-old called out 'The Problem Child' after his win over Page in London and has now explained the reason for doing so:
"I think it makes a lot of sense. He keeps losing opponents, I always show up for my fights. I have a lot of the attributes that he likes to compete against. UFC fighter, MMA fighter, shorter guy, smaller in weight, tough, and some people would say stiff or don't move my head. I just beat a titan in combat sports. So you want to soldify yourself?"
'The Problem Child' is 5-0 in his pro-boxing career and has beaten former UFC fighters Ben Askren and Tyron Woodley along the way. His recent fight against Hasim Rahman Jr. was unfortunately called off, but Paul hopes to return to the ring later this year.
Mike Perry just defeated MVP and called out Jake Paul #BKFC
https://t.co/N2dfimQzrP
With Mike Perry looking in ominous form of late, a battle with Jake Paul would be a must-watch fight. Furthermore, Perry is riding a three-fight win streak and will make it hard for Paul to continue his invincible run.
Watch highlights of Mike Perry in his latest fight below (from 14:20):