Mike Perry finally has a return bout on the calendar. Speaking Wednesday on Uncrowned’s “The Ariel Helwani Show,” BKFC founder David Feldman announced that Perry will headline the promotion’s Oct. 4 event against Jeremy Stephens in Newark, New Jersey.
The bare-knuckle boxing match will take place at 175 pounds for the King of Violence title. It’s been 16 months since Perry last stepped into a BKFC ring, when he TKO’d Thiago Alves in 60 seconds. Perry followed the performance with a boxing match against Jake Paul, which caused some friction between the fighter and the promotion for how it was handled from a promotional perspective.
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Initially, former UFC welterweight champion Robbie Lawler was BKFC’s desired option for Perry’s next fight. However, Feldman revealed that Lawler is still under contract with the UFC, which is unwilling to release him.
Ultimately, Stephens gets the nod after he made a brief return to the UFC for a one-off fight against Mason Jones in May, losing via decision. Stephens’ situation came as a surprise for a variety of reasons, but he exited BKFC after going 3-0 under the banner.
Though this might all seem like a coordinated effort now, it was actually far from it, according to Feldman.
“It wasn’t a part of the plan,” Feldman said of how things played out with Stephens. “At the end of the day, he wanted to fight in his hometown. He’s from Iowa. It was a great shot for him and good opportunity. It wasn’t the best opponent for him stylistically, and he didn’t win that fight, but his fighting style is to stand up and bang.
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“That’s what he’s going to have to do against Mike Perry. It’s not an easy task against Mike Perry. This is his sport. He’s made for bare-knuckle, and he’s showed that time and time again. It’s gonna be a tough task for Jeremy Stephens, but he said he’s up for the task. He told me he’s gonna knock Perry out.”
In his last BKFC appearance, Stephens finished former UFC lightweight champion Eddie Alvarez via third-round corner stoppage in January.
