How does Mike Perry compare to Jake Paul’s past opponents?
Mike Perry holds the status and belt of “King of Violence” in BKFC. That is with good reason. Although not a pure boxer, credit must be given to Jake Paul for stepping in there with someone as dangerous as Mike. But just how dangerous is “Platinum” Mike compared to the rest of Jake Paul’s past opponents?
In what is being viewed as a detour en route to Mike Tyson, may very well be a roadblock for “The Problem Child”. With all due respect to the great Mike Tyson, his fight with Jake Paul just did not feel right, especially at his age of 58 years old. Jake is still set to take on Mike Tyson, as the fight has now been rescheduled to November 15th. According to co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions, Nakisa Bidarian, waiting until then was not in the plans. So, we now get Jake Paul vs. Mike Perry on July 20th.
Let’s run through the not so impressive gauntlet of Jake Paul’s past opponents. From there, we can determine if Perry is his toughest challenge to date:
Deji
Deji is the brother of KSI and not someone you would consider to be a legitimate boxer. Especially not at the time of his fight with Jake. It would be an insult to Mike Perry if an argument was tried here.
AnEsonGib
AnEsonGib is probably one of the better “YouTube boxers” in the space and not as horrible as you might think. But to compare him to Perry? Yeah, no shot.
Nate Robinson
Nate Robinson was a great NBA player and athlete in his day. But it does not take an expert to see that we are not talking about basketball. In his only fight with Jake Paul, Nate’s sloppy approach proved why you don’t “play” boxing. Next.
Ben Askren
Ben Askren was the first real fighter that Jake has ever fought. The problem is that the NCAA Division 1 wrestler could not box eggs if he wanted to. Askren has been known over the course of his career as solely a dominant wrestler. Not to mention, he was retired and out of shape by the time they stepped into the ring.
Tyron Woodley
Tyron Woodley was the first test for Jake. He fought someone who can certainly hold his own in the standup, coupled with good power in his shots. Woodley even managed to hurt Jake and possibly drop him had it not been for the ropes. In his prime, you might make a case for Woodley over Perry. However, certainly not when he fought Jake, coming off four straight losses and a UFC release. You also have to factor in Perry having more experience than Woodley in boxing, albeit bare-knuckle.
Anderson Silva
Regardless of age, this was an impressive performance over Anderson Silva. Also, Silva was starting to make noise in boxing after defeating Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. Even at 47, “The Spider” was still a clever and tactical boxer that many young fighters wouldn’t dare challenge. But similar to Woodley, his best days were clearly behind him after losing 7 of 8 in the UFC. In his prime, there was no chance. But given Perry’s youth, I feel he will be a tougher test.
Tommy Fury
This was Jake’s first time actually fighting a traditional boxer his age. Tommy Fury was the only one of Jake Paul’s past opponents where he was not able to get his hand raised. In terms of pure technique, it may be hard for Perry to match Fury’s muscle memory in the sport. However, Perry’s savagery and never-say-die attitude have taken him a long way against perhaps more skilled guys. I will slightly favor Fury’s muscle memory over Perry’s toughness strictly in the squared circle and nowhere else.
Nate Diaz
Much like Mike Perry, many believed Nate Diaz’s toughness and tenacity as a fighter would get him past Jake. However, there is much more to the sweet science than being tough and durable. Jake has experience in training with some of the best boxing coaches money can buy. And that was enough for him to outpoint someone who is best suited for MMA. While Diaz is an absolute dog like Perry, his technique and punching ability do not match up to that of “The King of Violence”.
Andre August
If you need evidence of Andre August not being nearly as good as his record indicates, just turn on his fight with Jake Paul. Once the bell rang, we saw a limited fighter that looked like a deer in headlights. It is not shocking when you consider that the combined record of his opponents is 34-65. Perry would do whatever he wants with August in a ring.
Ryan Bourland
Not quite Andre August, but Ryan Bourland’s combined record of his opponents is 118-118. Let’s be honest, if this guy picked you up in an Uber, you would not bat an eye. No disrespect to Bourland, but anyone with a functional brain can see that he is not in Perry’s stratosphere. Ryan was another carefully picked sheep for slaughter with a pretty record for Jake to beat, unfortunately.
Who wins on July 20th?
Tommy Fury is the only one I potentially see as a bigger threat than Mike Perry. And he did beat Jake. Out of Jake’s 9 victories, 2 came from non-boxers, and 5 were against old MMA fighters. I do not say this to bash Jake, but rather to highlight the test he has on July 20th. Mike Perry is 32 and very much in the prime of his fighting career… Which can easily make this Jake Paul’s toughest test to date. I mentioned Perry’s toughness multiple times because he will be in Paul’s face round after round, head-butting his fists.
It will be on Jake to not wear himself out in the early going. Because, Mike Perry will be game from start to finish. Similar to Diaz, I think this fight will get more interesting in the later rounds as Perry should wear him down little by little. You would have to favor Jake’s combinations in a fight like this. But, if it turns into a scrap, we may see a second loss on his record. Unlike many of Jake Paul’s previous opponents, I can see this fight going either way, and for that, I will give Jake Paul some credit.
Jake Paul vs. Mike Perry goes down on July 20th in Tampa, Florida, live on DAZN. Will Mike Perry continue his hot streak, or will Jake Paul silence his doubter once again?
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