Mike Perry issues ominous warning to Jake Paul after final face-off scuffle: "They working hard to protect him"
Mike Perry sent a seemingly intimidating warning to Jake Paul after being shoved by the influencer-cum-boxer ahead of their highly-anticipated fight. Ex-UFC welterweight star Perry is scheduled to face Paul in a cruiserweight professional boxing match at the Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida, USA, on July 20, 2024.
During their face-off at the weigh-in ceremony on Friday (July 19, 2024), Paul and Perry, who've largely been cordial, seemed to trade barbs. Moreover, Paul ended up shoving 'Platinum.' They were swiftly separated by security personnel and others.
Most people onstage held Perry back, whereas Paul retreated. Speaking to Ariel Helwani, Perry addressed the scuffle and suggested that Paul was being protected. The 32-year-old stated:
"They working hard to protect him, bro. But tomorrow night in the ring, when it's just me and him, no protection. He going down."
Helwani noted that Paul has been dismissive of Perry's skills and has warned that he'll stop him in the very first round. When asked if he thinks Paul's overlooking him, 'Platinum' responded by implying that it took multiple well-built individuals to keep him off Paul after the shove. Alluding to a decisive beatdown on the horizon, he said:
"You seen how hard those big guys had to work to get me back. I was pushing through the whole sh**, bro. moving all they a**. That's like a thousand pounds of pressure. That's called 'Platinum' pressure. I'm putting it on him tomorrow night. I'm beating your a**, Jake!"
Helwani indicated that 'The Problem Child' was attempting to get under Mike Perry's skin and mentally break him. The veteran MMA journalist noted that he feels Jake Paul's attempt wasn't successful. When asked for his response and his final words to his opponent before their match, Perry replied by ominously vowing to take Paul's chin:
"No, we here for a fight, man. Like I told him. I'm here for everything. I'm here to eat everything he's got. And I'm taking your chin tomorrow, Jake."
Check out Perry's comments below (0:00 to 00:58):
Watch their weigh-in video and complete onstage interviews below:
Jake Paul takes a jibe at Mike Perry after weigh-in altercation
In his onstage interview with Ariel Helwani, Jake Paul (9-1 boxing) mocked Mike Perry (14-8 MMA, 1-0 Triad Combat, 5-0 bare-knuckle boxing, 0-1 boxing). 'The Problem Child' asserted that Perry was "light" and "flew" courtesy of his shove. Paul, who's also expected to fight boxing legend Mike Tyson on Nov. 15, 2024, indicated that he plans to keep competing and vanquishing his foes.
Furthermore, Paul claimed that UFC CEO Dana White promised Mike Perry a UFC contract if he knocked him (Paul) out. He insinuated that his business rivals, like White, aim to banish him from the fight game but are only making him bigger.
Paul opined that White should rip up the UFC contract, as he's going to "f**k up Mike Perry" and keep beating MMA fighters sent his way. Around the 5:25-minute mark of the aforementioned weigh-in video, he further stated:
"I'm on a mission from God; a mission from God, a servant of God, to save this sport. And that's exactly what I will keep doing. Keep on winning. Keep on fighting. And guess what, Ariel, I'm gonna keep f**king him up! Tomorrow night, I'm f**king him up! Tampa, let's go!"