Tag: Mike Perry

4-0 is nice, but UFC 245’s Geoff Neal won’t be happy until he’s 10-0 in the octagon

Geoff Neal wants to steal some of Mike Perry’s “clout” with a big win on Saturday at UFC 245.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Geoff Neal[/autotag] wants to steal some of [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag]’s “clout” with a big win at UFC 245.

Neal (13-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC) has started his octagon tenure in promising fashion with four consecutive wins. He’s still relatively unheralded, but he hopes to change that with continued success against a fan favorite like Perry (12-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC).

There’s a lot for Neal to be excited about in his career right now, but he said he’s still done nothing to brag about.

“I’m 4-0, and I want to make it like 10-0 right now,” Neal bluntly told MMA Junkie on Wednesday. “I’m not stuck on that 4-0 right now.”

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Neal will attempt to continue his winning streak in his most high profile fight to date. He meets Perry at UFC 245, which takes place at T-Mobile Arena. The welterweight bout is part of the televised prelims on ESPN2 prior to the pay-per-view main card.

The matchup with “Platinum” is one Neal said he’s been seeking for quite some time. He would’ve preferred someone higher ranked, but he thinks beating Perry should line him up for a top-10 opponent next year.

“I’ve been trying to get that fight for a minute, and he finally accepted,” Neal said. “Things happened. He didn’t get the fights he wanted. I didn’t get the fights I wanted, and it happened. We’ve both here. We’re ready to go.”

To hear more from Neal, watch his complete UFC 245 pre-fight interview above.

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Mike Perry and the broken nose that made him ‘more human’ than ever

Adored by fans for his outside-of-the cage antics and exciting fighting style, Mike Perry enters UFC 245 a changed man.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag] is a changed man.

Adored by fans for his outside-the-cage antics and exciting fighting style, Perry enters UFC 245 fight week with new intentions.

On Saturday night, Perry takes on Fortis MMA’s Geoff Neal (12-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) in the featured preliminary welterweight bout. Perry (13-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC) said he’s evolved into a more focused fighter for this one.

“I’m trying to stay calmer than ever,” Perry told MMA Junkie on Wednesday. “I don’t think I let the games I play get in my way. I try not to let them distract me. I try to stay focused on the task, which is getting the win. But I kind of got a no-nonsense type of opponent. So I’m going to bring that same mentality. It’s no nonsense.

“I really feel like it’s do or die this weekend. It’s life or death. It’s kill or be killed. So I’m very serious – which, it’s hard to be the fun guy when you’re feeling that way. I feel like my whole job is on the line. My whole life is on the line.”

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Perry said the change in attitude won’t happen overnight, but he plans on taking baby steps until he gets there. Why the sudden change? Perry attributes it to a gruesome broken nose he suffered in his most recent fight against Vicente Luque in August.

“I’ve got to say the broken nose helped,” Perry said. “That maybe helped me take it more serious. It’s not like I wasn’t taking it seriously. … (But) this guy is out here training, trying to kill me. I’ve got to do the same – the pain and suffering. I thought I was going to be a hideous creature after my nose got separated.

“The mindset is I don’t want to let these guys hurt me. But at the same time that made me think, ‘OK, forget backing up. Forget trying to stick and move.’ I’m going to go forward. If I’m going to bleed, then I’m going to cover you in my blood. I’m going to bleed all over you. Because if I’m going to get hit, and I can take it, I might as well just go forward and show you you can’t push me back.”

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Perry said the nose injury resulted in him feeling “more human” than ever. It’s not that he’s gained the ability to tolerate pain; Perry said he’s always had that.

What he gained out of the experience has to do with his attitude in persevering through adversity. Fans should expect to see a hybrid version of himself.

“You’re still going to get some of the old Mike Perry,” he said. “Some of the new Mike Perry. And then there’s going to be a totally different Mike Perry in there on Saturday.

“… (Expletives) are going to bleed. That’s for sure.”

UFC 245 takes place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

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UFC 245 prelims pre-event facts: Matt Brown still holds records after two-year break

The best facts and figures about the UFC 245 prelims, where Geoff Neal meets Mike Perry in the featured bout.

The UFC’s final pay-per-view of the year is the deepest of all. UFC 245 takes place Saturday at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, and in addition to three title fights on the main card, the prelims, which air on ESPN2 and ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass, have a lot to offer.

The featured bout is an anticipated pairing in the welterweight division, with [autotag]Geoff Neal[/autotag] (12-2 MMA, 4-0 UFC) looking to continue his unbeaten start inside the octagon against fan favorite [autotag]Mike Perry[/autotag] (13-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC).

For more on the numbers behind that matchup, as well as the others, check below for 30 pre-event facts on the UFC 245 prelims.

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Featured ESPN2 prelim

Neal is the first welterweight to start 4-0 in the UFC since current champion Kamaru Usman.

Perry has earned his past two victories by decision after beginning his career with 11 stoppages.

Perry has alternated wins and losses over his past five UFC appearances. He was defeated in his most recent bout at UFC on ESPN+ 14.

Perry is 2-4 in his past six fights dating back to December 2017.

Other ESPN2 prelims

[autotag]Ketlen Vieira[/autotag] (10-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) returns to competition for the first time since Mar. 3, 2018. The 651-day layoff is the longest of her more than five-year career.

Vieira’s four-fight UFC winning streak at women’s bantamweight is tied with Germaine de Randamie for the second longest active streak in the division behind Amanda Nunes (eight).

[autotag]Irene Aldana[/autotag] (11-5 MMA, 4-3 UFC) defends 93.5 percent of all opponent takedown attempts in UFC competition, the highest rate of any female and fourth overall in company history

[autotag]Omari Akhmedov[/autotag] (18-4-1 MMA, 7-3-1 UFC) is 2-0-1 since he returned to the UFC middleweight division in December 2017. He’s 3-0-1 in the weight class overall under the UFC banner.

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[autotag]Matt Brown[/autotag] (21-16 MMA, 14-10 UFC) returns to competition for the first time since Nov. 11, 2017. The 763-day layoff is the longest of his more than 14-year career.

Brown competes in his 25th UFC welterweight bout, the second most appearances in divisional history behind Thiago Alves (26).

Brown is 2-5 in his past seven UFC appearances dating back to July 2014.

Brown’s 14 victories in UFC welterweight competition are tied for fourth most in divisional history behind Georges St-Pierre (19), Matt Hughes (16) and Thiago Alves (15).

Brown has earned 19 of his 21 career victories by stoppage. That includes 12 of his 14 wins under the UFC banner.

Brown’s 12 stoppage victories in UFC welterweight competition are tied with Hughes for most in divisional history.

Brown’s 10 knockout victories in UFC welterweight competition are the most in divisional history.

Brown’s 24 submission attempts in UFC welterweight competition are second most in divisional history behind Chris Lytle (31).

[autotag]Ben Saunders[/autotag] (22-12-2 MMA, 8-9 UFC) is 5-6 since he returned to the UFC for a second stint in August 2014; it includes one win outside the promotion.

Saunders’ three-fight losing skid is the longest of his career. He hasn’t earned a victory since June 2018.

Saunders’ three knockout victories stemming from knee strikes in UFC competition are tied with Anderson Silva and Michael Bisping for second most in company history behind T. Alves (four).

Saunders earned the first omoplata submission finish in UFC history when he defeated Chris Heatherly at UFC Fight Night 49. Adam Wieczorek earned the second finish with the technique at UFC on FOX 29.

Saunders omoplata finish was just the second in the combined history of the UFC, WEC, Strikeforce and PRIDE. It’s one of three overall, along with Wieczorek and Shane Del Rosario, who also accomplished the feat.

Featured ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass prelim

[autotag]Chase Hooper[/autotag] (6-0-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC), 20, is the youngest of the 26 fighters scheduled to compete at the event.

Hooper returns to competition for the first time since Dec. 14, 2018. The 365-day layoff is the longest of his more than two-year career.

Other ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass prelims

[autotag]Brandon Moreno[/autotag] (15-5-1 MMA, 3-2-1 UFC) is on a three-fight winless skid in UFC competition. He hasn’t earned an octagon victory since April 2017.

[autotag]Kai Kara-France[/autotag]’s (20-7 MMA, 3-0 UFC) three-fight UFC winning streak at flyweight is tied for the second longest active streak in the division behind Henry Cejudo (four).

Kara-France has earned all three of his UFC victories by decision.

[autotag]Jessica Eye[/autotag] (14-7 MMA, 4-6 UFC) competes in her fifth UFC women’s flyweight bout, tied for the second most appearances in divisional history behind Gillian Robertson (six).

Eye is 3-1 since she dropped to the UFC women’s flyweight division in January 2018.

Eye’s six losses in UFC competition are tied for second most for any female in company history behind Angela Hill (seven).

[autotag]Oskar Piechota[/autotag] (11-2-1 MMA, 2-2 UFC) has suffered consecutive losses after starting his career on a 12-fight unbeaten streak.

UFC research analyst and live statistics producer Michael Carroll contributed to this story. Follow him on Twitter @MJCflipdascript.

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