Mike Perry has decided to wade into the world of combat sports promotion by setting up his own organization! The UFC veteran and BKFC’s ‘King of Violence’ is scheduled to take on Jake Paul on July 20 in a boxing match after heavyweight legend Mike Tyson had to withdraw from his bout against the social media influencer turned boxer due to health complications. Before his clash against Paul, Perry held a press conference in Tampa to announce the launch of ‘Dirty Boxing Championship.’

The project is a joint venture between Perry, and his team at ‘First Round Management’ alongside former ‘Karate Combat’ executive Adam Kovacs and ‘Kanpai Media’s Josh McLean. During the press conference, ‘Platinum’ stated, “This promotion has been in the works for over a year, and we started this because of my success in bare-knuckle.”

The rule set for the promotion was also unveiled during the press conference and it will be primarily based upon striking with boxing rules but will be contested with 5 oz gloves. The rules also allow for elbows, open palm strikes, and ground and pound on downed opponents, however, there will be no grappling or submission attempts involved in the matches.

The bouts will be contested in three 3-minute rounds in a smaller 18-foot boxing ring but the ground and pound will only be allowed if the fighter remains on both feet. Weight classes are currently planned to be based around MMA weight limits and the first event is expected to be held sometime around September or October. However, reactions to the announcement have been mixed with fans taking to social media to share their thoughts on the news. Here’s a look at what the netizens had to say.

Mike Perry’s latest venture draws a mixed bag of reactions from fans online  

Fans were curious to know how Mike Perry’s promotion would determine what constitutes grappling because the rules say the fighter has to stay standing to land ground and pound, which would still involve some method of controlling their opponent.

“No grappling but ground n pound? Where does control end and grappling begin?”

Others brought up the fact that fighters like Alex Pereira with their incredible kickboxing achievements will be uniquely suited to the promotion as they won’t have to worry about takedowns and can fire away without any concerns about their opponent shooting for their legs.

“Alex pereira would put up historic numbers in this promotion”

However, the concept has left some puzzled as the rule set resembles an MMA fight very closely albeit with some wrinkles

“This is just an Mma match with extra steps”

But for fans who aren’t fans of wrestling/grappling-heavy contests, the promotion brings something new to the table. According to Josh McLean of Kanpai Media, “I think this rule set is going to be the most exciting thing for the casual fan base that’s been put together”

“Don’t mind it at all. No more cr*tch sniffing lol”

Some mentioned how the rule set seems to echo that of the first-ever UFC event, but at the moment, the promotion seems to be avoiding the ‘no holds’ barred and bare-knuckle chaos of the inaugural UFC event

“Slowly just coming full circle back to UFC 1”

Fans also raised concerns about the ground-and-pound rule as without tying up or breaking their opponent’s posture, it’s really hard for the fighter on the bottom to survive and get back to their feet without involving defensive grappling

“How tf are u supposed to defend GNP if there’s no grappling”

Others compared it to existing promotions like ‘Karate Combat’ which primarily focuses on striking with a sprinkle of ground and pound and limited takedowns in the forms of trips and sweeps.

“That’s basically Karate Combat lmao”

In summary, Mike Perry’s innovative format that aims to offer a new combat sports experience by blending MMA and boxing elements without grappling and submissions has sparked curiosity and debate amongst fans. With its first event slated to be held in the near future, it’ll be interesting to see how the ‘Dirty Boxing Championship’ affects the landscape of combat sports.

Do you think Mike Perry’s latest venture will be able to provide something new to the combat sports fandom? Why or Why not? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!