Mike Perry parted ways with the UFC and walked away from mixed martial arts in 2021 after losing to Daniel Rodriguez at UFC Vegas 23. He found a new home and rejuvenated his career in Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship.
He went undefeated (6-0) as a bare knuckle boxer earning the nickname “The King of Violence,” but he’s done with BKFC. He also landed a boxing match against Jake Paul on short notice in 2024. Now, Perry is eyeing a full time MMA return.
He returned to MMA in May, defeating fellow former UFC standout Nate Diaz on the Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano Most Valuable Promotion’s fight card. He fought again in August, losing to Brandon Jenkins at Duel Arena 1.
“I might be having another big MMA opportunity here soon,” Perry said on The Ariel Helwani Show while also confirming that he will not return to BKFC.
“It’s good to get that out. You know, I’ve kind of had some feelings about it. It’s like the BK cheat code, man. Like, that bare knuckle stuff is like a cheat code, I guess. And those two-minute rounds. And it’s like I was good at it. It was fun. I made some noise doing it. And I’m ready for another challenge. So I think MMA is in my foreseeable future and I’m going to give it my best shot,” said Perry.
“I think it’s gloves for me and I’m going to keep that as like close to my heart as like, oh, I’m a high level professional and I’m getting to build something here and it’s very challenging. It’s harder. A five-minute round with everything with the grappling and the boxing and the kicking.”
Perry didn’t completely nail the door shut on a bare knuckle return but the 35-year-old plans to focus solely on MMA for at least the next two years.