Once among the most anticipated fights of 2024, Jake Paul‘s return to the boxing ring on Saturday night in Tampa has lost some luster since 58-year-old opponent Mike Tyson suffered a medical emergency on a May flight from Miami to Los Angeles.
Citing an ulcer flareup, Tyson has since agreed to postpone his bout with the 27-year-old Paul until November 15, thereby allowing bareknuckle fighter and ex-UFC star ‘Platinum’ Mike Perry to step in on Saturday in his place.
It’s obviously an unusual situation: Perry, at 32, is becoming a headliner in just his second career boxing match because a former heavyweight champion 26 years his senior has a festering sore in his stomach lining.
But to anyone who witnessed Thursday’s profane press conference, where the trash-talking Perry (0-1) matched Paul (9-1) insult for insult, the converted boxer appeared right at home as a headliner. The two came to blows on Friday night, as well, as the weigh-in nearly turned into a brawl before Saturday’s showdown.
And while Paul has dismissed Saturday’s bout as a ‘Mike appetizer’ and ‘Mike warmup,’ press conference moderator and MMA aficionado Ariel Helwani reliably called Perry ‘one of the toughest SOBs on the planet.’ Now Perry has a chance to make a name for himself, not only by beating a wildly famous former YouTube star, but by putting that November 15 Paul-Tyson fight in jeopardy with a stunning upset: ‘I’m a crazy [expletive] and I’m here to fight.’
An exasperated Jake Paul shuts his eyes as Mike Perry talks trash to the crowd in Tampa
After serving as a backup fighter for two Paul bouts, Perry (right) gets his chance Saturday
A combat sports enthusiast and professional for the better part of the last decade, Perry’s route to the top of this fight card isn’t any more bizarre than Paul’s.
That former Disney Channel star and YouTuber has made millions as an ‘influencer’ boxer and promoter, all without ever beating a recognizable pugilist – something his bout with Tyson was intended to remedy.
Perry obviously doesn’t have Tyson’s boxing resume, but he does have other advantages over the Hall of Famer.
Specifically, Perry was born after the Lyndon Johnson administration, he hasn’t qualified for AARP membership, and while he has only one other boxing match on his record – a knockout loss in 2015 – he does have a dangerous reputation on the bareknuckle circuit, where he’s 5-0.
The question is, can Perry make make fans forget about Tyson’s absence?
Perry’s 0-1 boxing record aside, Paul’s challenger began training in the sport as an 11-year-old. In fact, he was actually from one of the sport’s hotbeds, Flint, Michigan, where two-time gold medalist Claressa Shields and former super middleweight titlist Anthony Dirrell were both born.
Growing up in Michigan and Florida, Perry struggled with bullying and as a result, began getting into fights at school.
‘[In Michigan] I was one of maybe 10 white kids in the whole school, so I was bullied a lot,’ he told MMA Junkie in 2015. ‘It was the same thing at other schools. I wouldn’t back down, so I would get into fights.’
Fighting didn’t help Perry make honor roll, but it did provide him with a career path.
Standing 5-foot-10, Perry began pursuing a career in mixed-martial arts and quickly established himself as a talented striker with nine knockouts to start his career.
Mike Perry points to a miniaturized Jake Paul head that he has attached to a chain on his neck
Platinum Mike Perry Shows off his skills during a recent open workout in Tampa
Mike Perry bleeds profusely during UFC Fight Night at the Amway Center in Orlando in 2018
The problem was, Perry wasn’t entirely done with being a troublemaker.
‘I played Grand Theft Auto, and I wanted to be like that, I wanted it to be easy like that,’ he told MMA Junkie in 2015. ‘I smoked drugs, I carried guns, and I thought I was a gangster.’
There was an arrest for burglary, a two-year community control sentence, which is similar to house arrest, and a failed drug test resulting in a few months in jail for the aspiring MMA fighter.
In the end, it was the stint behind bars that Perry claimed set him straight.
‘The day I got out of jail, I showed up at the UFC gym in Winter Springs [Florida],’ he told MMA Junkie, ‘and it’s been good ever since then.’
He’d go on to make his debut in the octagon at UFC 202 in 2016 filling in for another fighter, Sultan Aliev, who was forced to withdraw due to injury.
Facing veteran South Korean welterweight Lim Hyun-Gyu, Perry earned a stunning first-round knockout victory, albeit one that was tarnished by allegations of racism against Perry’s cornerman, Alex Nicholson.
‘He can’t even open his mother***ing eyes,’ Nicholson was heard saying during pre-fight introductions.
Mike Perry reacts after the conclusion of his welterweight fight against Vicente Luque in 2019
Jake Paul has dismissed Mike Perry as a mere ‘appetizer’ before his postponed Mike Tyson bout
Nicholson later apologized on Twitter, but Perry leaned into the comment days after his debut victory.
‘I don’t think any of my competition can see me, and when I hit him, I opened a lot of people’s eyes,’ Perry told the MMA Hour’s Ariel Helwani.
Perry’s victory over Hyun-Gyu and another knockout win over Danny Roberts helped to raise his profile, and he was soon facing tougher competition. He’d go on to earn consecutive ‘Performance of the Night’ honors in 2017 with knockout wins over Jake Ellenberger and Alex Reyes.
But as his competition improved, his record quickly fell from 11-1 in 2017 to just 14-8 by April of 2021.
So Perry left the Octagon and entered the fledgling Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, where his striking power made him an immediate success.
‘He does have one-punch knockout power that I do have to respect,’ Paul told reporters Thursday. ‘But other than that, it’s going to be easy.’
Perry and Tyson have more than Jake Paul in common.
Like Tyson, who has been convicted for everything rape to drugs, Perry has found himself on the wrong side of the law on several occasions.
There was an alleged 2016 incident in which Perry was accused of knocking a man unconscious after he approached the fighter’s then-girlfriend.
A similar situation unfolded in 2020, when Perry was accused of knocking out an elderly man. Perry was ultimately charged with a misdemeanor after telling police that he did not initiate any physical contact.
But Perry may have been at rock bottom in 2020, when his ex-wife and former tennis pro Danielle Nickerson told MMA Junkie that he had been violent with her.
He has denied the allegations and no charges were ever filed, although Perry did tell MMA Junkie that he has received help for both alcohol abuse and anger management issues.
‘I did not put hands on my ex at any point in our short term [sic] marriage,’ Perry said.
‘I have realized that I have said some things in the past that do not put me and what I stand for in the best of light and for that I apologize,’ he continued. I am now in a loving relationship where I am looking forward and excited to welcoming [sic] my first born. I’m hopeful my ex can move on and find peace as I have.’
Even this week, Perry ignited some concerns by attacking a mascot at Wednesday’s workout and ultimately needed to be restrained.
Mike Perry took on a mascot during his open workout on Wednesday in Tampa
Ultimately Perry needed to be pulled off the defeated mascot at Wednesday’s workout
But if Perry has found peace outside the ring, he’s also enjoying some newfound success between the ropes.
In April, he scored a first-round knockout over light heavyweight Thago Alves at BKFC Knucklemania IV to improve his bareknuckle record to 5-0.
And this is where Perry finds himself now: An undefeated bareknuckle fighter trying to make an impact on the world of boxing.
With a win over Paul, Tyson’s November 15 bout with the ‘Problem Child’ and its million-dollar purses would all be at risk. And while he claims he’s unconcerned, Paul revealed he did get a phone call from Tyson to make sure he has Saturday’s bout under control.
‘Tyson was concerned about me taking this fight,’ Paul told reporters at Wednesday’s workouts, as quoted by MMA Mania. ‘He’s like, ”What is Jake thinking? This guy Mike Perry is a killer.” So he had some concerns. But Tyson, my message to you is don’t worry. I’m going to put this guy to sleep. This is a Mike appetizer and you’re next.’
Perry, for his part, envisions things going in a much different – and far gorier – direction.
‘Your little baby green punches can’t even reach my brain stem, bro,’ Perry told Paul during a recent faceoff on DAZN. ‘I’m going to dig through your eyeball and find your memories.’
