Mike Perry, who will fight Jake Paul this weekend, once knocked out his tennis star girlfriend Danielle Nickerson with a powerful body shot during a sparring session.
Jake Paul's next opponent, Mike Perry, once knocked out his tennis star girlfriend with a powerful shot during a training session.
Former mixed martial arts star Perry will fight for just the second time as a professional boxer this weekend in Florida against Paul, who was due to face Mike Tyson in Texas this summer but the former heavyweight champion withdrew on doctor's advice.
Perry has compiled an impressive 5-0 record in bare-knuckle boxing since leaving the UFC, but will be at a weight disadvantage when he faces Paul. The 32-year-old Perry has had a turbulent life outside of the world of mixed martial arts.
Perry is married to former professional wrestler Latori Gonzalez – the couple met at a mixed martial arts show – and have been together since 2020. They have two children.
Perry was previously in a relationship with tennis player Danielle Nickerson, and was photographed sparring with her in 2019. Perry, then 27, mostly took the sparring lightly, lightly hitting her in the head and body.
But toward the end of the video, which was broadcast on his YouTube channel, he landed a left hook to the body of Nickerson, sending her to the floor, but she quickly got up and the two embraced and shared a kiss.
Perry later congratulated his then-girlfriend, joking, “Nice job. Give me some love.” Nickerson took an active role in Perry's training camp, including preparing meals for the welterweight.
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She has been spotted in his corner during fights. The two married in 2019 but filed for divorce the following year. His current wife, Gonzalez, has also been involved in his career, even accompanying him to the cage for MMA fights while carrying ice and water. It remains to be seen what role she will play against Paul this weekend.
This may not be the last time the two face off in the ring, as Paul has said he plans to fight Perry either in a hand-to-hand or mixed martial arts fight. He told The MMA Hour: “I'd love to fight in mixed martial arts and I think Perry would be a good opponent for mixed martial arts and maybe a hand-to-hand fight. I haven't thought about it yet, but I'm open to it.”
