Mike Perry surprised a lot of fans with his win at UFC on ESPN 12. His decision to run his own training camp and have his girlfriend, Latory Gonzalez corner him paid off as he was able to pick up another win against Mickey Gall. Moving ahead, Perry knows that he will need a full team, especially for what he has planned in the future.
While Perry celebrated the win and enjoyed being able to rub his win in the face of his doubters he opened up about why he made the choice he did for this fight. Having a team that motivates him when necessary was something he feels was lacking in the past. He used an example from Gian Villante’s corner as an example of what he is not looking for. “I remember the fight before mine,” Perry said at the post-fight press conference. “In Gian Villante’s corner his coach was like, ‘What are you doing, you’re not doing nothing!’ and it’s like, you ain’t doing nothing bro! You’re sitting on the outside.”
Perry says a corner should lift their fighters spirits when they are down and Gonzalez did that for him but he knows a team is necessary; especially for what lies ahead. “I want to go to South Florida and work with Yoel Romero, I want to feel that the 185-pound weight class,” Perry said of his decision to move to South Florida and American Top Team. The intention, it seems, is to face Darren Till in the future.
“Man, 170 is such a great place for me, but I want to fight Darren Till,” Perry said. Till has voiced his dismay of a possible matchup against Romero in the past so it seems Perry wants to test those waters with the man Till would rather avoid.
Only the future will tell if Perry’s decision will pay off but for now, it seems like he made the right move for this final event at the UFC Apex.
Do you think we’ll see Perry at middleweight?
