Mexico’s Erik ‘Goyito’ Perez sees the division up for grabs and wants to make a statement against Josh Hill at Bellator 244.
[autotag]Erik Perez[/autotag] sees the path to gold in Bellator’s bantamweight division.
The Mexican fighter likes the current state of his weight class, as a new champion is soon to be crowned, and apart from Sergio Pettis, there doesn’t seem to be a long queue of clear contenders.
Perez (19-7 MMA, 0-1 BMMA) fights Friday at Bellator 244 in Uncasville, Conn. He takes on fellow veteran Josh Hill. Although he’s coming off a defeat, “Goyito” believes he can place himself in good position at 135 pounds with an impressive showing.
“I like how it is, and if I have a good performance I don’t think it will get me to fight for the title because that’s already going to be disputed, but I do feel like the division is very open,” Perez explained in Spanish on MMA Junkie’s “Hablemos MMA” podcast. “I think at any time next year I can be champion, and that’s my goal – be champion next year.
“But right now I’m at a moment where I need to prove what I’m made of since my last fight wasn’t good. But after Friday, I’m going to plan everything. But like I said, step by step, and Josh Hill will be the first, and we’ll take things from there.”
Perez is coming off a knockout loss to Toby Misech. The defeat snapped a five-fight winning streak that had him pick up victories at Combate Americas and the UFC.
Apart from getting a hold of the title in Bellator, the Tijuana native wants to carry over certain challenges he helped overcome in the UFC. Perez is considered a pioneer of Latin American fighters competing in major MMA promotions.
“When I entered the UFC, my goal was for more Mexicans to come in the company, that more Latin American flags were seen in the UFC,” Perez said. “When I entered I was the first fighter 100 percent born and raised in Mexico.
“In Bellator, at the moment there is no channel, no TV network that broadcasts the fights (in Latin America). But the good thing is that my fight is on YouTube, so everyone can watch it – Mexico, Latin America, everywhere. I do feel an obligation to my people to give a good fight and that Bellator soon reaches the Latin American channels.”
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Although Perez might be considered a veteran and a pioneer, the Alliance MMA product is just 30 years old. He got an early start in MMA, turning professional when he was just 18.
Perez feels that, at this moment of his career, he has the right mix of experience and youth to show the best version of himself.
“I feel great, I feel very mature, and I feel I’m at my best moment,” Perez said. “I’m strong. I feel very fast. I feel like I can fight with anyone right now.
“That’s actually how I felt in my last fight in Bellator, but it happened that a punch snuck in, and I had never been knocked down before. My opponent went over six-and-a-half pounds, they accepted the fight, the commission didn’t weigh him the day of the fight – it was a whole thing. And you know, in this sport, six-and-a-half pounds is a lot. That’s another weight class in boxing, and in boxing they fight with eight ounce gloves, and we fight with four.
“So I passed that page, I focused on my game. Now I feel very seasoned, very fast, very strong, and I feel like I’m at my best. I know I’m going to show it this Friday.”
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