Mike Perry really is the “King of Violence” and the face of bare-knuckle fighting.
In his return to BKFC more than a year after his last appearance in the promotion, Perry showed why he was made for this sport after he walked through some early punches from Jeremy Stephens and then just dished out vicious punishment until he finally scored multiple knockdowns to earn the stoppage win.
The finish didn’t come until the fifth round but by that point Perry was just hammering Stephens with punches and after he was dropped to the canvas several times, the referee finally saw enough to stop the contest. The end came at 1:35 in the final round.
“I don’t really feel it but it is fitting I am the ‘King of Violence,’” Perry shouted to the New Jersey crowd. “I can take it but it ain’t nothing to me but a little candy. He threw some decent shots, I guess. My eyes are wide open.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity. Anything I’ve said that maybe ridiculed anyone in the company, I’d like to take this chance to apologize to absolutely nobody. ‘The King of Violence’ does what the f*ck he wants!”
Of course that final line was Perry quoting BKFC co-owner Conor McGregor after he said almost the exact same thing after he became the first ever simultaneous two-division champion in UFC history. Before leaving the ring, Perry took time to face off with BKFC middleweight champion Dave Mundell, who has been calling for a fight between them for the past couple of years.
In the past, Perry didn’t seem interested after he already beat Mundell in MMA but it certainly seems like there’s a chance the fight happens now, especially with the vitriol they shared in the ring on Saturday.
As far as his fight with Stephens, Perry actually had to battle through some early adversity after he briefly got wobbled with a punch in the first exchange. But with size and power on his side, Perry looked to overwhelm Stephens as he tried to score the knockout with every punch thrown.
Still, Stephens was consistently connecting with a right hand that Perry was struggling to defend against.
But like usual, Perry just absorbed the punishment and marched forward with ruthless aggression as he continued launching bombs at Stephens. The constant barrage had Stephens on his backfoot but he was still doing his best to fire back, although the damage was really starting to mount.
As the fight moved into the third round, Perry was mashing down on the gas pedal, just coming after Stephens and launching massive punches. The constant barrage, which included a series of nasty uppercuts in the clinch, eventually put Stephens on one knee as the referee gave him the standing eight count.
Another shot landed and a gash opened over Stephens’ left eye as blood began pouring down his face.
With the fight slipping away from him, Stephens came out firing in the fourth round but Perry was like the Terminator just eating whatever was thrown at him and then coming back at him with devastating combinations. Perry was just teeing off with another left followed by a right that dropped Stephens again.
With two minutes remaining, Perry was looking for the kill and Stephens was shifting into survival mode. Perry blasted Stephen with another blistering series of punches that dropped him to the canvas but the former UFC featherweight refused to stay down.
A right hand dropped Stephens and he was barely able to get up this time and as soon as the fight got started again, Perry connected with a huge left hook that ended the fight. As soon as Stephens dropped again, the referee waved off the fight to prevent further damage being inflicted.
While it’s impossible to know when the day might come that Perry’s defense — or lack thereof — comes back to haunt him but he continues to dish out punishment like nobody in the sport. Perry has transformed himself into a legitimate draw and superstar in BKFC and he re-established his dominance with another impressive win on Saturday.
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