Mike Perry is set to face Nate Diaz in an MMA bout on May 16, headlining MVP's inaugural MMA card streaming live on Netflix from the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, Calif.
Perry, who holds BKFC's "King of Violence" title, left the UFC in 2021 and has been competing in bare-knuckle fighting since. Diaz, meanwhile, said he was in negotiations for a UFC return before opting to sign on to fight Perry, with his MMA comeback options narrowed to either this Netflix bout or a trilogy fight in the UFC.
Speaking on landing the matchup, Perry said, "It feels great; I kind of snatched that one from under McGregor," and added, "I've been over there at bareknuckle getting all the fights while he's been talking on the sidelines, not fighting anybody, trying to piggyback off my hard work. So the fact that I took out the trilogy. Nate didn't want to fight a dangerous weakling like McGregor. He said he's on one f*cking leg. He said he's either out of the door or he's going to revitalize his career by stepping back in there and beating on somebody. I'm not worried about that. I'm looking to beat Nate and then get all the opportunities that come with that."
Perry, 34, noted the age gap between him and Diaz, saying, "He's getting older. He's had a long road in this game, as have I. With my youngness – you know, I'm a lot of years younger than him – my strength and power, my aggressive style. To bring that to him, he knows I'm coming at him. To get the opportunity to face a Nathan Diaz before he decides to leave the game, I'm going to give the fans the fight they want."
