YouTuber turned professional boxer Jake Paul will go head-to-head in the ring this weekend against UFC and bare-knuckle fighting star Mike Perry in a showdown between “Platinum” and “Problem Child.”
Mike Perry, who takes on Jake Paul in the boxing ring this weekend, will be trying hard to cause trouble for Paul.
The 27-year-old YouTuber-turned-boxer was originally scheduled to face boxing legend Mike Tyson on July 20 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, but “Iron Mike,” who is 30 years Paul's senior, pulled out of the bout in May due to health concerns. Their fight is now scheduled for November 15, but Paul was adamant about finding a replacement for this month's bout.
And the young man may have taken on a lot more than he could handle when he answered the call of “Platinum” Perry and accepted the invitation to fight. A former UFC fighter with a 14-8 record inside the Octagon, Perry has had some tough fights over the years with some of the biggest names in MMA history.
Perry, 32, turned to bare-knuckle boxing after UFC wins over Alex Oliveira, Paul Felder, Alex Reyes and Jake Ellenberger. The Flint, Michigan native was almost born into the sport. Perry is 5-0 in BKFC, with perfect wins over Thiago Alves, Eddie Alvarez, Luke Rockhold, Michael “Venom” Page and Julian Lane. Paul is no stranger to professional MMA, but he has never faced an opponent with the skill or determination that Perry had in his prime.
Here, the Mirror breaks down five reasons why Perry could cause trouble for Jake Paul when the pair go head-to-head in the ring this weekend.
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1) Perry can take a punch
Many combat sports fans know Perry as “that dog” and that he never gives up under pressure. The competitive fighter has only lost once in his career, when he received a powerful head kick from Geoff Neal at UFC 245. Perry defeated Vicente Luque by split decision in 2019, despite a massive knee in the third round that completely dislocated his nose, a blow that would have knocked out many men.
Perry joked that he would be “happy” to get punched by Paul on Saturday night. Before the fight, he told DAZN, “I know he's going to throw good punches, and I'll be happy, so I'll punch him back, but he'll hate it.” Paul knocked out former UFC middleweight champion Tyron Woodley in their second bout in a boxing ring in 2021, with a looping right punch that sent the now 42-year-old Woodley face-first into the canvas. But Perry has shown time and time again that he's not a glass chin, so Paul's natural knockout power may not save him this time.
2) He has knockout power
While Paul is blessed with speed and power, Perry is just as skilled, if not more, at targeting his opponents' chin and ending fights quickly. Eleven of the MMA star's 14 wins have come by knockout, and many of his BKFC bouts have come by stoppage.
“Platinum” may have earned Perry a strong, sturdy jaw, but he's also proven time and time again that he packs a ton of punches. The superstar shattered former UFC champion Rockhold's teeth for a second-round win at BKFC 41, and he proved he can end fights early and at any time with a thumping right hand against James Rodriguez at Florida Championship Fighting.
Of course, Paul has faced knockout artists such as Anderson Silva during his professional boxing career, but when the two meet in the ring in 2022, the Brazilian will be past his prime at 47 years old, while Perry is still enjoying the prime of his career.
3) Perry is incredibly aggressive.
Paul hasn't dealt with many suffocating front-line fighters in his boxing career so far – Nate Diaz preferred to flash more than hang on in their bout last year – but Tommy Fury showed boxing fans what the pressure can accomplish when they fight in February 2023.
The YouTuber-turned-boxer was forced to resort to clinching and clawing to counter Fury's relentless attacks, who tried to smother the American throughout the bout, and this approach exposed weaknesses in Paul's abilities as he ultimately lost the bout by a 74-75, 76-73, 76-73 split decision.
Perry is known for his pressure boxing and isn't afraid to land flurries of strikes from long range to close the distance and get inside. This could be a problem for Paul, as he will likely not be able to win in the clinch if his punches come flying.
4) He has no fears
It takes a special type of person to decide to pursue martial arts as a career in the first place, but bare-knuckle boxing is the most violent sport out there. While boxers wear 8- or 10-ounce gloves to protect their hands, MMA fighters traditionally wear 4-ounce gloves that provide a little more cushioning when delivering and receiving blows.
But in BKFC, gloves are never used, fighters engage in skin-to-skin contact in the ring, and the possibility of being sliced or knocked unconscious with one blow requires that athletes are truly fearless, especially when they have only their bare hands to protect their head from looping and straight attacks.
Perry will go into Saturday's bout with a “nothing to lose” mentality and full confidence – and probably won't return to traditional boxing afterwards – but Paul will be eager to defend the 9-1 record he's worked so hard to build over the past four or so years.
Speaking to DAZN ahead of the fight, Paul acknowledged that a loss to Tyson would mean he risks missing out on the biggest prize of his career to date, but that it would only increase the pressure inside the ring this weekend. “A lot of people think it's crazy that I'm making this move,” he said, adding, “He takes punches like it's nothing, he's fast, he's athletic, he hits hard, he's a brawler. You can't take that lightly.”
5) He's a veteran of the game.
Granted, the number of boxing bouts the two have had together gives Paul the advantage on paper: the YouTube sensation is 9-1 in the ring, while Perry's only previous appearance was in 2015, when he was knocked out in the fourth round by Kenneth McNeil.
However, there's no underestimating the amount of time “Platinum” has put in fighting in all sorts of competitions throughout her career. The All-American has competed in 22 bouts against some of the world's best in mixed martial arts and has never once shown signs of giving up.
He boasts a 5-0 record in BKFC and wins over several former UFC champions in mixed martial arts, as well as a win over Michael Shields in Triad Combat (another bare-knuckle boxing promotion) in 2021. He's been in some of the bloodiest fights in BKFC and UFC history, and he knows where to look when the odds are stacked against him.
Paul has beaten Diaz, Silva, Woodley and Ben Askren, some of the best fighters in MMA history, but he was in little danger of being beaten by them because they fought past their sell-by date and had faded from their prime. Furthermore, none of these fighters were known for their striking. Askren and Woodley were wrestlers, while Silva and Diaz were known for their high-level jiu-jitsu. Perry is a whole other ball game.
Jake Paul will face Mike Perry on Saturday, July 20th at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.
