Mike Perry 'fired' from BKFC, UFC could land on $384B streaming giant, punch that may have rocked Conor McGregor: MMA Rumor Roundup

A frustrated Mike Perry wonders if Conor McGregor truly 'fired' him from BKFC. Elsewhere, the UFC reportedly has a new broadcasting platform this year.

Here are your top combat sports rumors from this week, presented by Sportskeeda MMA.

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Mike Perry: "I guess Conor McGregor really did fire me"

Mike Perry expressed frustration about his BKFC activity during a recent Overdogs Podcast episode and wondered if Conor McGregor's infamous 'firing' had anything to do with it. Speaking to his co-hosts about his bare-knuckle hiatus, 'Platinum' said:

"I'm just like fine, sure like offer me somebody, tell me what's going on, tell me something. I guess Conor really did fire me, what the f*ck, where's my fight at?''

When asked if Perry's starting the Dirty Boxing Championship could be the reason, he said that BKFC CEO David Feldman had given his blessings to it and that Perry's new venture did not threaten the promotion.

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UFC broadcast rights could go to Netflix next

Veteran MMA journalist Damon Martin reported that at least part of the UFC's broadcast rights could go to Netflix in 2025 after the current deal with ESPN expires. The popular streaming juggernaut, boasting a net worth of $384.9 billion as of Dec. 31, 2024, according to Macrotrends, swung into combat sports broadcasting with Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson last year.

With over 282 million subscribers worldwide, Netflix has also signed a 10-year deal worth $5 billion with WWR to broadcast Monday Night Raw. Both WWE and UFC now being under the banner of TKO Group Holdings, the reported deal may very well go through.

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Khabib Nurmagomedov's punch that may have rocked Conor McGregor

AKA head coach Javier Mendez uploaded a video of Khabib Nurmagomedov practicing a punch that he trained for a thousand times but used only once in competition:

"The punch that was practiced over thousands of times only to be used once in competition @khabib_nurmagomedov hit Gold when it mattered and repetitions while staying grounded to the daily grind is what every fighter must do to make it count. Results come from hard work and staying focused on the basics to sharpen your skills."

Fans claimed that it was the same punch 'The Eagle' used to rock Conor McGregor during their high-intensity, bitter rivalry-fueled UFC 229 clash. Take a look back at the sequence below and see for yourself if the two punches look similar.

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Leon Edwards' next fight hinted

Leon Edwards is seemingly returning to action in a UFC London card on March 22. The date or opponent is not confirmed, but two names have been rumored this past week.

Rising welterweight Carlos Prates shared an edited photo of him fighting 'Rocky' on Instagram Story with the text 'Soon,' hinting that he may be fighting the former 170 pounds champion early next year.

However, Australian insider Benny P reported days after that Edwards will be facing Jack Della Maddalena on the card. He also added that Kamaru Usman is currently out of the equation for Maddalena for reasons unknown at the moment.

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Belal Muhammad vs. Shavkat Rakhmonov at TUF?

A manually edited or AI-generated photo of Belal Muhammad facing off with Shavkat Rakhmonov made rounds on the internet this past week. It triggered the rumor that they were going to compete against each other as coaches in The Ultimate Fighter's next season.

However, Rakhmonov's manager Daniel Rubenstein dismissed the rumor on X:

"Lol no they won't. On this BS again. Stop making sh*t up."

This isn't the first time Rubenstein has expressed frustration about fake rumors being spread about his clients. He has previously called out other MMA accounts for claiming to have inside news about athletes he represents.

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Alex Pereira teases return date

Alex Pereira's next fight has not been announced yet but 'Poatan' knows how to keep his fans engaged on social media. In a cryptic tweet this week, the Brazilian teased a return at UFC 312 which is scheduled to take place in Sydney, Australia, on Feb. 8, 2024.

However, the UFC pay-per-view card already has a main event - Dricus du Plessis vs. Sean Strickland - and it is unlikely that Pereira would fight in a non-headliner contest. Thus, Pereira's tease could very well mean he will attend the event to witness the two middleweights fight it out over his old UFC title.