Mike Perry has called on Conor McGregor to ditch the gloves and face him in the oldest form of boxing. This callout comes as McGregor himself, who advocated for a spot on the White House card for months, was left disappointed when the card was announced at UFC 326. Still, ‘The Mystic Mac’ hasn’t given up on the idea of a comeback in the promotion. But former UFC fighter Mike Perry has proposed a different path for the 37-year-old.

“I know Conor is punching the air right now,” Perry told Ariel Helwani. “Me and Nate instead of his trilogy… The world is excited to see you(Conor McGregor) back in the ring. I know you’re working on it. I know you’re trying, I know UFC’s giving you a hard time, so we all look forward to seeing you back in the ring. I don’t know who he’s going to fight.

“I don’t think the Chandler fight makes a lot of sense anymore. But he could fight me in Bare Knuckle, maybe, if he wanted to.”

Notably, in his bid to secure a spot on the White House card on June 14, the former two-division UFC champion explored several potential opponents. He initially suggested Michael Chandler as an ideal matchup, but UFC CEO Dana White shut that idea down. Chandler is now set to face Mauricio Ruffy on the card, leaving McGregor on the sidelines.

There were also discussions about a bout between Jorge Masvidal and ‘The Mac,’ though that idea was quickly dismissed. A long-awaited trilogy fight against Nate Diaz was another option floated for the event, but it never materialized. ‘The Stockton Slugger’ is now scheduled to face Mike Perry on Saturday, May 16, at the Intuit Dome in Inglewood, to be broadcast live on Netflix.

The fight will be part of Ronda Rousey vs. Gina Carano event’s undercard, alongside the co-main event between Francis Ngannou and Philipe Lins. McGregor and Diaz, on the other hand, famously split their two previous fights, with one win apiece. A trilogy bout has been rumored for years but has yet to come to fruition.

As for Mike Perry’s BKFC callout, it’s definitely a possibility, considering both men are part owners of Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) promotion. While Perry continues to push for a bare-knuckle showdown with McGregor, a fight both men have previously expressed interest in, the idea has yet to gain serious traction. Even though ‘The Mac’ has expressed interest in the fight before, it remains on the shelves for now.

Regardless, there’s a report suggesting McGregor could have been on the White House card, but isn’t because of his own decision.

Conor McGregor decided not to fight Mauricio Ruffy at UFC White House

According to Mauricio Ruffy, the Irish star had shown interest in facing him but ultimately chose not to move forward.

“Conor McGregor talked about the possibility of a fight, opened up the possibility of fighting,” Ruffy told HITC. “It was discussed, but he’s the one who makes the decisions, and he made the decision not to fight.”

‘The Mac’ publicly cited business reasons for his withdrawal, suggesting the UFC prefers his return to take place at a major arena event to maximize revenue. Meanwhile, Ruffy admitted he never fully expected the fight to materialize either.

“I also didn’t have high expectations about it.”

As a result, Ruffy now faces Chandler on the card. It’s worth mentioning that McGregor was previously supposed to fight Chandler in 2023, but pulled out at the last moment from the fight due to injury. Since then, Chandler has been waiting for Conor McGregor to face him.

While Perry’s bare-knuckle challenge adds another layer of intrigue to McGregor’s comeback saga, ‘The Notorious’ remains a man with many options but no confirmed opponent, leaving the fight world to speculate which path he’ll ultimately choose.