Who is Mike Perry and Why Is He Part Of A Boxing PPV Main Event?

The first word that comes to mind when describing Mike Perry as a boxer is “bad.”

This is not “bad” as in “bad-*ss.” It’s more of a literal bad, as in awful, terrible.

Then, some other descriptive words come to mind– crude, stiff, slow. unimaginative, defense-averse, less-than-basic, crappy.

But here we are, anyway, talking about the former UFC mid-carded and current bare-knuckle boxer as one-half of a DAZN Boxing pay-per-view main event against YouTuber/Influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul this coming Saturday, July 20 at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.

The 32-year-old Perry has some combat sport credentials. He’s 14-8 as a pro mixed martial artist (7-8 in the UFC) and currently has a 5-0 record as a bare-knuckle boxer in the BKFC. He’s also 0-1 as an actual boxer, with a 4-round decision loss that came way back in 2015.

He’s also, clearly, a legit tough guy in the real world sense.

But Perry ain’t a “real” boxer.

And, obviously, that’s just fine for Jake Paul and his purposes right now.

The 27-year-old Paul was set to fight the 58-year-old heavyweight legend Mike Tyson this Saturday on Netflix in what was expected by many to be the most watched boxing match of all-time. Instead, Tyson got an old man gastric disorder and had to pull out, putting off the novelty bout until November.

Paul, for whatever reason, felt the need to keep the July 20 date, though.

One theory is that he needed a fight date to put his growing stable of fighters, competing under the Most Valuable Promotions banner, to work. Notably, he has women’s champ Amanda Serrano, who was supposed to be on Paul’s last show in March, but had to pull out due to injury. The female star hasn’t fought since last October and is set to face Katie Taylor in a highly anticipated rematch on the Paul-Tyson November undercard. Coming into that contest following a 13-month layoff would’ve been a serious handicap.

So, Paul put together an event to keep him and his fighters working.

That’s just a hunch as to why anyone just had to scramble up a Jake Paul card to make up for the postponed Paul-Tyson card.

Whatever the reason behind the show and behind choosing Perry as an opponent, promoting it has become an issue. Since the fight was announced, Paul, Perry, and the promotion have been desperately trying to hype an event with a $64.99 price tag that nobody asked for, has no purpose, and inspires no expectations.

Most of the effort has been invested in making Perry sound significantly better than Paul’s last two opponents– “real” boxers who were inactive and competing 20+ lbs. under their ideal weight.

However, Perry, himself, spills the beans on reality when he talks about his game plan against the novice-level Paul, who is still much more skilled in boxing than him.

“I’m going to hit him and he’s not going to like it,” Perry told Morning Kombat. “I’m going to chase him around the ring, I’m going to make him tired and keep that pressure on him. In training it’s not about what he does; I don’t watch tape, I really don’t.”

In an interview on the Most Valuable Promotions’ Twitter/X page, Perry continued on with the “I’m just gonna hurt him” strategy talk.

“I’m gonna pummel Jake and stay on top of him and stay in his face and punch him,” Perry said. “[Punch him to the] body, head, shoulders, arms, hips and I’ll win the fight.”

“I plan on bringing the pain to Jake,” Perry told MMA Fighting. “I’m going to put a pressure style on him, a Mike Tyson brawler style boxing is what I bring to the table. I’m putting pressure. I’m getting inside. I’m slipping side to side and I’m ripping straights and hooks and jabs and body shots. I want to work that body. I want to break his sides down. I want to make him tired of dealing with me and just stop putting that pressure on him, no matter what he does.”

In other words, he’s coming forward and just going to “tough” his way to a win.

And could it work? Could Perry catch Paul with something big, hurt him, and pound him down? Yeah. Paul isn’t exactly Pernell “Sweetpea” Whitaker. But it’s not likely.

Most likely, Perry will get caught with a kill shot, received after throwing a sloppy haymaker.

If that happens, things will play out exactly as planned on a card meant to just keep everyone busy until Paul’s November Mike Tyson fight (if it doesn’t get put off again).

And Mike Perry, after bagging some substantial fall guy money, will go back to the bare-knuckles world where he best fits in.