Mike Perry vs. Robbie Lawler: BKFC Fight Never Happened
Mike Perry called out Robbie Lawler for a bare-knuckle bout in late 2024. In January 2025, BKFC president David Feldman told MMA Fighting that the bout was one possibility if Lawler was available and willing to return. Feldman said the promotion holding Lawler’s contract would have to agree; he did not say White personally had to approve Perry’s BKFC return.
Perry fought other opponents
The Lawler matchup never materialized. Perry returned to BKFC against Jeremy Stephens on Oct. 4, 2025, and won by fifth-round TKO, according to the event results. In 2026 he stopped Nate Diaz by doctor’s stoppage in Round 2, then lost to Brandon Jenkins by first-round TKO at Duel Arena 1 after Dillon Danis withdrew and Jenkins replaced him. MMA Fighting reported that Perry suffered a shoulder injury during the bout.
The proposed Lawler fight attracted attention because both men were established names from mixed martial arts. For Perry, however, bare-knuckle boxing had already become an important competitive setting of its own. His April 2024 appearance against Thiago Alves at KnuckleMania IV ended with a knockout after just sixty seconds in Los Angeles. The fight report and highlights documented his fifth BKFC victory.
That background explains why another recognizable former UFC opponent was an appealing possibility. A public callout could generate interest, but turning it into a scheduled contest still depended on the fighters, their contractual positions and an agreement with the promoter. Feldman’s comments described that process as conditional rather than announcing a completed booking.
The distinction between an idea and an official matchup is central to this story. Perry’s interest in facing Lawler was real, but the available competitive record ultimately followed a different route. His later appearances should therefore be evaluated as separate events rather than as evidence that the proposed Lawler contest had been finalized.
