UFC fighter turned BKFC brawler ‘Platinum’ Mike Perry is making headlines once again, this time for getting into a brawl during a press conference in Moscow.
Perry traveled to Russia to be in the corner of his friend and teammate Alex Nicholson who is scheduled to fight under the Ren TV Fight Club banner. During a press conference for the event, Mike Perry came face-to-face with established Russian middleweight Magomed Ismailov. After calling Ismailov a “motherf*cker,” things quickly escalated with the two having an impromptu bare-knuckle brawl inside the studio.
Following the incident, ‘Platinum’ spoke to Red Corner MMA to share his thoughts on the heated altercation and whether or not he would entertain competing in a bare-knuckle fight in Russia.
“I almost fought bare knuckle in Russia five minutes ago cause I’m like excited, I’m like damn, I came to Russia with my boy Alex [Nicholson] to fight and I’m not even fighting so I was a little excited I was going to fight for free but that’s dumb because I’m a businessman. I’m worth millions of dollars, straight up. They gotsta pay me and I’ll put on a show, and I just did. I just gave y’all a taste for free.”
Mike Perry Open to a Bare-Knuckle Fight in Russia
Mike Perry continued his comments while taking a shot at Ismailov in the process, outright accusing the fighter of being on steroids.
“That’s what contracts are for, that’s why this is called business, okay?” Perry said. “You’re not gonna make a name off yourself and I come in weighing my fight weight and you come in juiced to the gills on steroids. I’m a natural fighter and I fight at 175 pounds professionally and I’m one of the best fighters in the world. Period. So, I don’t care about weight, but that’s what my managers are for.”
Ismailov is a well-respected middleweight competitor in Russia who carries a record of 17-3-1, including wins via knockout and four by way of submission. Though the two fighters are far apart when it comes to weight classes, Mike Perry is open to the possibility of throwing hands with the Russian star in the future.
“He’s very huge,” Perry said. “Like at least 220 and I fight at 175, if he can make the weight, we can do it. I mean, I was about to fight him right now, I said it. If you want to fight, let’s fight. I don’t waste no time. I’m not here to fight, they didn’t give me a contract, okay?
“You ain’t gonna make me no highlight, f*ck that,” he added. “I’m gonna defend myself at all times. Then there was random guys coming from the back behind me trying to hit me and sh*t. So, I’m glad it worked out.”
