Mike Perry says there’s no real beef between him and Conor McGregor—despite years of public jabs, a tense faceoff, and some fiery back-and-forths.
Their dynamic kicked off in 2023, when Perry was riding high after reinventing himself in Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship. At BKFC 41, he stopped former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold in the main event, instantly becoming the face of the bare-knuckle scene. The victory celebration didn’t last long, though—McGregor made a surprise appearance, jumping into the ring for an intense staredown that ignited buzz about a possible future fight.
Fast forward to 2024, and things took a turn. After Perry suffered a loss to Jake Paul in a boxing match, McGregor—who by then had become a part owner of BKFC—slammed Perry for launching his own promotion and even threatened to remove him from the roster. That triggered a war of words between the two that played out across social media and interviews for months.
Although tensions seemed to die down, the rivalry resurfaced at a recent BKFC press event, when Perry once again pushed for a fight with McGregor. The Irishman’s response? “Dance for me,” he snapped.
Still, Perry insists there’s no real animosity behind it all. According to “Platinum,” he’s not holding a grudge—it’s just business.
“A little bit confusing. A little confusing,” Perry told said during a recent appearance on Demetrious Johnson’s YouTube channel. “I keep things a certain way and the guy asked me — I actually didn’t expect them to ask me the state of me and Conor McGregor. I guess I’m stupid for not expecting that. But they did and I said, ‘Hey, I want to fight you,’ and he’s like, ‘Well, you’re going to dance for me.’ It was confusing.
“I got lots of people like, ‘I wish you would’ve hit him,’ or ‘I wish you would’ve done this,’ and I’m like, OK, but why are you guys such haters? Technically because he said he fired me I should hate him? He kept the company afloat while I’ve gotten time with my family. He is a great promoter and he speaks well. We haven’t seen him in the ring in over four years or more, and my first thought as a pro fighter wasn’t, I’m going to hit this guy for being in my face and telling me you’re fighting Oct. 11.
“He did a little bit kind of steal the spark of that announcement, because I called him out for a fight and he had to protect himself. ‘You’ll dance for me, Oct. 11.’ And I’m just like, alright, he’s announcing my date. Yeah, I’m going to fight. And we know I’m not fighting you. You’re still owned by the UFC. You can’t get out. They’re holding on tight to you. You’re promoting for us.”
While Perry downplayed the tension, he still couldn’t resist getting in a quick dig at McGregor.
“People are like, you should’ve hit him, and I’m like, why?” Perry said. “I’m a pro fighter. We toe the line. We start fair and square. If someone hits me first, or touches my face, I’m going to try to get toward them, and if I’m able to get through five security guards, then I will hit them. But that’s part of the game. Dealing with him, I didn’t have any ill will or animosity.
“I was happy to be back, I was promoting my tequila, I was looking good up on stage, I was thinking about my wife in the audience, and I definitely didn’t want anybody throwing a dolly at her or something like that.”
