Conor McGregor puts pressure on Mike Perry ahead of BKFC 82
Conor McGregor puts pressure on Mike Perry ahead of BKFC 82
Conor McGregor has it out for Mike Perry, and he let it be known the first time he took the microphone during Thursday’s BKFC 82 pre-fight news conference.
“You know what’s at stake, Michael: If you don’t perform, you’re gone,” McGregor said, addressing Perry directly. “You can go back to those exhibition bouts and those misfits where they put on the big gloves. We’ll part ways. But I’m confident you’ll show up and do your thing, and I’m excited to see it.”
Perry, who’s undefeated at 5-0 in bareknuckle boxing, takes on fellow UFC veteran Jeremy Stephens for BKFC’s “King of Violence” title in Saturday’s BKFC 82 headliner at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. The fight will mark Perry’s first BKFC appearance since knocking out Thiago Alves in April 2024.
After that win, Perry veered away from BKFC to do a boxing match with Jake Paul, which he lost by TKO. McGregor – the former UFC two-division champion who owns a minority stake in BKFC – wasn’t thrilled about it, resulting in McGregor saying Perry was fired from BKFC. Now McGregor is threatening him again ahead of BKFC 82.
During Thursday’s press conference, BKFC president David Feldman said it could make sense for the Perry vs. Stephens winner to fight middleweight champion Dave Mundell, although Feldman emphasized the promotion needing to “move the needle.” When Perry was asked about a potential future fight with Dillon Danis, it got Perry excited – but not McGregor.
“Why not, man? I’m sure I’m gonna have bigger and better things to do after victory on Saturday night,” Perry said. “I’m sure there’s plenty of big opportunities. The question that Feldman got is would one of us get a shot at the world championship, and he said we’ve got to move the needle …”
That’s when McGregor cut him off.
“You’ve got to f*cking fight for that world title, Mike,” McGregor said. “You’ve never been a world champion here. So you’re in here saying you’re this and you’re that. You’re no world champion. … You’re next fight is for a world title. That will move the needle. You’re next fight, if you get through this, has got to be for the world title.”
