UPDATE: Perry didn’t die, but he didn’t make weight, either. Full story HERE.
Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight veteran Mike Perry made a conscious decision to delay his weight cut until the last minute, claiming he understood the process and wasn’t too concerned about the hard work required to get it done.
Yeah, about that …
“I have always talked trash during weight cuts so that if I couldn’t make it I could say I told y’all I wasn’t sure,” Perry wrote on Twitter. “Maybe I’ve outgrown this. I did try to ask for a fight at 185 but maybe I just don’t have it anymore. I’m so thankful to all the kind people at the UFC.”
Perry, 29, has just a few hours before hitting the scale for the UFC 255 weigh ins, where he’ll try to come in no heavier than 171 pounds for his welterweight contest against Tim Means on tomorrow night’s pay-per-view (PPV) main card in Las Vegas, Nevada.
“Can’t believe I’ve even been here this long,” Perry continued. “Maybe I should just lay the gloves down. I don’t want it. I’m just in over my head with this weight. I was just 189 and now I’m 177 and I can’t sweat. I ran with a nice sauna suit, got in the portable sauna for 15 minutes, nothing.”
Weight-cutting has become a hot-button topic over the last few years in the wake of several high-profile mishaps, some of which resulted in death. As a result, California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) has taken steps to penalize repeat offenders.
“So easy for people to sit there and say shit but I swear I feel like anyone saying I’m weak for this doesn’t cut weight,” Perry said. “It’s death to me. I’m dying already and have six more pounds to go. I know it doesn’t sound like a lot but it’s harder than the first 14.”
The UFC 255 weigh ins begin at 12 p.m. ET and you can watch them LIVE right here.