Midnight Mania! ‘Mature’ Mike Perry Gets Philosophical

Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images

Bringing you the weird and wild from the world of MMA each and every weeknight!

Welcome to Midnight Mania!

Mike Perry is a staple of Midnight Mania thanks to the eternally entertaining nature of both his fights and personality. One half is pretty self-explanatory: “Platinum” throws with massive power and has always been willing to brawl. The other is more unique to Perry, as his rough upbringing and general lack of filter are made palatable and even charming by his charisma and self-awareness. Somehow, Perry is always on the verge of saying something hilarious and occasionally insightful.

Ahead of a very difficult opponent in Vicente Luque this weekend at UFC “Montevideo,” Perry talks about the difficulties of balancing a smart approach to combat with entertaining fans and keeping the bosses happy. Check it out below:

Or for those who cannot watch the video, the “Platinum” one begins, “The way to win, it seems different. And… I’ve grown up and matured, and there are smarter ways to go in there.” Perry hopes to avoid becoming a “beat up meathead” while his bosses and the crowd request a version of himself that’s willing to sacrifice the game plan.

It’s interesting talk from Perry, particularly ahead of his bout with Luque. I cannot imagine what Perry’s path to victory is except to trade with Luque, nor can I envision a scenario in which Luque allows Perry to do anything else. The two have been matched up because it will create an electric contest, and I don’t know if any amount of maturation will prevent the expected violence.

All the same, the ability to follow a game plan will hopefully serve Perry well in the future, and it’s good to hear the 27-year-old cognizant of the tactical side of the game.

Insomnia

I mentioned last week that Nad Narimani’s son is a hilarious young killer. Well, Narimani is back in Sacramento, and Enzo is already looking to take out Danny Castillo!

Check out the highlights from last week’s World Lethwei Championship. David Leduc’s right elbow to rolling left hook combo was a piece of brilliance.

One of my favorite headlines from The Onion is applicable here: “Average Male 4,000% Less Effective In Fights Than They Imagine.”

Speaking of strong women…

Maximum DC vs. Khabib hilarity:

It’s a strong three for me! Let’s get weird!

I’d like to see Frankie Edgar square off with someone like Pedro Munhoz or Jimmie Rivera in his Bantamweight debut.

How the hell did Dustin Poirier used to make 145 lbs.?!? The man looks huge ahead of his Lightweight title bout opposite Khabib Nurmagomedov.

Slips, rips, and KO clips

Megaton blessed Twitter today with some highlight clips from DEEP 22 IMPACT back in 2005. It’s fascinating to see just how much the game has changed, the first scramble is particularly full of rare transitions.

Random Land

This young lad should’ve pulled guard. Or run away.

Midnight Music: Weirdo pop genius Ariel Pink is reissuing a pair of his hard-to-find older albums and releasing a new compilation of leftover non-album songs — a wise business decision that will leave me poor as I hopelessly buy all of them. One of the new singles from the upcoming comp, Oddities and Sodomies Vol. 2, is below:

Sleep well Maniacs! There’s always more martial arts madness on the way.