‘Platinum’ Mike Perry is, without a doubt, the biggest, most popular superstar in bare-knuckle boxing. He is both the Conor McGregor and Jon Jones of bare-knuckle, having established himself as the GOAT since leaving the UFC back in 2021. Which raises the question- why is Perry so popular now when he had a mixed stint at the UFC?

After all, many other UFC stars, much more popular and accomplished than he was at the UFC, have also tried their hand at bare-knuckle, but haven’t been able to generate a fraction of the buzz or reach a fraction of his star power. After all, there must be something special about ‘Platinum’ which sets him apart from his peers. Well, MMA legend Bas Rutten and Joe Rogan had the perfect answer to this question.

“Mike Perry, that’s one of those guys [that] if you’re a promoter, grab that guy. Great on the microphone, great interviews. He’s either going to get knocked out or he’s gonna knock somebody out. Roll of the dice, you know he’s the perfect guy for any organization,” Rutten told Rogan on the latter’s podcast.

Rogan agreed and felt that the American had a renaissance since joining the BKFC as the sport fits him like a glove because of who Perry is. Which does seem to be true. ‘Platinum’ seems to have really found his niche with the brutal and bloody sport of bare-knuckle boxing, where he is not only undefeated, but has also beaten two former UFC champions already- Luke Rockhold, and Eddie Alvarez.

“Well what he’s doing now with bare knuckle fighting is amazing. Knocking out Luke Rockhold like that, stopping him, beating up Michael ‘Venom’ Page- who saw that coming? He’s just so f—ing tough that there’s something about the pain that comes with bare-knuckle that just suits him,” Rogan added. But there was the recent buzz around Perry being fired by minority BKFC owner, Conor McGregor.

Was Mike Perry fired by Conor McGregor?

Mike Perry stepped up to fight Jake Paul in July this year after Mike Tyson was forced to pull out of the clash due to health issues. Perry, ever the kill-or-be-killed type of fighter, as Rutten pointed out, went all out against Paul, but got knocked out in the sixth round, suffering his first combat sports defeat since leaving the UFC three years ago.

As a veteran of the fight game, Perry could have taken it easy against Paul and danced with the celebrity boxer for the entirety of the fight, losing a decision to ‘The Problem Child’ but keeping his reputation intact. Instead, the BKFC star chose to go toe to toe with Paul, getting knocked out by him, and briefly becoming the laughingstock of the combat sports world.

So much so that Conor McGregor, who is a part-owner of the BKFC (and absolutely detests Jake Paul), ‘fired’ Perry from the promotion after the Paul fight. Not really though! Perry, like ‘Mac’ is also a co-owner of the BKFC, and is still on the promotion’s roster. In fact, McGregor should be the last person who should want to see Perry out of the promotion since BKFC would be far less valuable without ‘Platinum’. What do you think about Joe Rogan and Bas Rutten’s thoughts on Mike Perry?