The best and worst from UFC on Fox 28

#2 Worst: Has the UFC backed a losing horse in Mike Perry?

Does Mike Perry deserve such a big push from the UFC?

Mike Perry reminds me of a late 2010’s version of Phil Baroni, a UFC favorite from the early 2000’s. A brash, confident trash talker with brutal knockout power, Baroni never quite made it to the top due to some limitations. Perry, it seems, may be heading the same way. Baroni’s issues were a shoddy gas tank and limited grappling skill, but Perry appears to simply have issues with any striker who can move well inside the cage.

Last night appeared to be a softball for him after his December loss to Santiago Ponzinibbio – Max Griffin was 1-2 in the UFC and hadn’t looked great – and yet Perry was again largely picked apart by a striker with better movement, even being dropped and badly hurt in the second round. Perry didn’t even stick around to hear Griffin’s name announced as the winner once the fight was over.

The UFC is often criticised for not being willing to push new stars, but I’m not sure that this is the case – they have clearly pushed Perry, after all – it could be more that they’re simply pushing the wrong fighters. Perry is exciting but limited, but he’s still become a star to a lot of the fans. Could the same have been said for someone like Kamaru Usman – a genuine contender – if he’d been given the opportunities Perry has been given?

Remember this was Perry’s 6th televised UFC fight, and I’d argue that in at least four of those the UFC gave him favourable matches. Someone like Usman might be criticised for a boring style, but given good style matches, would that be the case? It’s food for thought.