Fear No Man: Paul v Perry Preview and Prediction

Influencer and serial risk taker Jake Paul faces former UFC star turned king of bare-knuckle boxing inside the square circle at the Amalie Arena in Tampa Bay on Saturday night (Sunday morning SA time), writes Quintin van Jaarsveld.

4 AM Sunday SA time

Jake Paul (1.25) v Mike Perry (3.95) (Cruiserweight)

If YouTuber turned prize-fighter Paul’s boxing career has taught me anything, it’s to expect the unexpected.

The 27-year-old was originally set to fight the legendary Mike Tyson this Sunday,Instead of waiting to face “Iron”, Paul pivoted and announced a new eight-round cruiserweight clash against Perry. He’ll have the same advantages he had over the previous opponents he lured out of the UFC, namely size and age, but it’s a risky proposition for him. Lose here and it could cost him the mega money fight against Tyson. but that bizarre bout had to be postponed to November after the former heavyweight champion suffered a medical emergency in May.

Perry is a junkyard dog of a fighter. He’s tough as nails and loves violence. Whether it’s making his opponent bleed or tasting his own blood, “Platinum” loves to fight and refuses to take a backward step. It’s that warrior spirit that’s made him the face of Bare-Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) post his UFC career.

It also makes him an ideal test for Paul as he’ll provide the forward pressure Tyson will bring to the table come November. He’s not quite as ferocious as Tyson was in his prime, few are, but the ferocity and fearlessness he’ll bring again make him a great stylistic match up for Paul ahead of his meeting with the boxing icon.

Taller (by three inches) and younger (by five years) with a five-inch reach advantage, Paul is a heavy favourite, having also packed up plenty of extra size in preparation of his heavyweight fight against Tyson, but he can ill afford to overlook Perry. The 32-year-old is a dangerous brawler who’s not showing up just to collect a paycheck. He has big plans to knock out Paul and take his place against Tyson.

Perry has always been a solid, hard-hitting brawler. He has a mixed martial arts record of 14-8 with 11 knockouts and has won all six of his post-UFC fights, including five in the BKFC ring. Two of those BKFC wins were over former UFC champions, the first over Luke Rockhold and the second over Eddie Alvarez (both by stoppage), the latter seeing him crowned the promotion’s inaugural King of Violence. 

He won his most recent bout, against fellow UFC veteran and former BKFC middleweight champion Thiago Alves, by first-round knockout and welcomes the short-notice opportunity to take on the most-loathed character in combat sports. He’s sharpened up his striking since moving to bare knuckle boxing and has pretty fast hands and good combinations, while his fight IQ is also improving.

Paul is 9-1 with six knockouts. He bounced back from his lone loss to Tommy Fury with a decision win over UFC legend Nate Diaz and has added back-to-back first-round knockout victories over journeyman boxers Andre August and Ryan Bourland, the last of which came in March, to build some momentum.

“The Problem Child” has definitely improved but in saying that, he’s no world-class boxer. What he is, is big, strong, athletic and uber confident. He has some instances of digging deep without being in an all-out war and perhaps more than anything, this clash against the hard-nosed Perry will test his fighting spirit. It’s only eight rounds as mentioned, though, which favours the bigger Paul.

The pair have sparred in the past with Paul remembering he cracked Perry with a few hard shots, while Perry recounts putting the heat on a tiring Paul in the latter rounds. We’ll see who the better man truly is soon enough. There’s been the usual trash talk you’d come to expect from a Paul fight, some cringe-inducing and some entertaining, and at the end of the day, it should be a fight worth watching due to Perry’s aggressiveness.

As always, Paul has stacked the deck in his favour, but it remains a risky fight for him. He’d be wise to use his size advantage to lean on and sap the energy of his smaller foe and should land the heavier punches. Perry, though, is a live dog. I do expect Paul top get the W, but Perry – with his heart and granite chin – will make him work for it for the full eight rounds.

Prediction: Paul by decision.

Best Bet: Paul by decision at 3.50.

Alternative Bet: Paul by KO/TKO/DQ at 1.80.