Tag: Dean Barry

Dean Barry talks mental health after UFC release: “I kind of spiraled down…I was questioning whether I wanted to fight anymore.”

Dean BarryThis time last year, Dean Barry was preparing for a golden opportunity, his UFC debut. Unfortunately, due to an eye poke, he ended up on the wrong end of a disqualification in this bout against Mike Jackson. Subsequently, Barry was cut from the UFC, but a path for a return was left open. ‘The Sniper’ […]

Dean Barry

This time last year, Dean Barry was preparing for a golden opportunity, his UFC debut. Unfortunately, due to an eye poke, he ended up on the wrong end of a disqualification in this bout against Mike Jackson. Subsequently, Barry was cut from the UFC, but a path for a return was left open.

‘The Sniper’ is set to make a return to MMA in 2023, now back in the regional scene. In just under a year after the UFC debut, Barry will be fighting in Cage Warriors to hopefully make his way back to the premier MMA promotion in the world. For his first action back in MMA, Dean Barry takes on fellow Irishman Adam Shelley at Cage Warriors 153 in Dublin, Ireland.

Recently Dean Barry took the time to speak with Alex Lerman of LowKick MMA to discuss his mentality following the UFC release and offer some foresight into how his return to MMA vs. Adam Shelley will play out.

Dean Barry Talks Mental Health Following UFC Release

Dean Barry was open and honest when speaking about his mentality post-release, mincing no words, he explained:

“It was kind of like a blessing because I got in at a really wrong time in my life, mentally I was at a really bad place the last two years. After that fight, I kind of spiraled down, just the abuse online and stuff like that… I was questioning whether I wanted to fight anymore, if I was done.”

Barry explained how things have turned around for him:

“I’ve been on anti-depressants now since October… and it’s changed my life to help me drastically. I’m in a really good place at the minute, the best place I’ve ever been in mentally, so I think that’s really going to help me now.”

Dean Barry Looking for a Knockout vs. Adam Shelley

Barry’s upcoming opponent in Cage Warriors, Adam Shelley, is an opponent who will be a very familiar face. Dean explained how the two used to train together in their younger days:

“It could probably be like 14 or 15 I’ve known him since. We would travel through the Irish Kickboxing team together; I did point fighting and Adam did continuous fight… My gym would go over to his gym and we would do sparring, his team would come over to us and we’d do squad training… I’ve always had nothing but pleasant with Adam…”

Despite the amicable history between the two, Barry will go into this fight as if it were any fighter standing across from him in the cage. On how the fight will play out, Barry continued:

“I think it’s going to be a very good fight, it’s going to be a very calculated and technical fight with the two of us trying to set traps and play games with each other. We came from the same world, so it’s going to be a chess match nearly… I’m going to be calm, patient, and calculated, and I think I can knock him out.”

Dean Barry vs. Adam Shelley goes down on April 29th at the 3Arena in Dublin. Headlined by a title unification fight between Rhys McKee and Jim Wallhead, Cage Warriors 153 should be must-see MMA action.

Watch below for the full interview with Dean Barry:

Mike Jackson: If I Suck, Why Would You Want To Fight Me?

Mike Jackson has today returned fire at the fighters calling him out, pondering why, if he is so bad, they want to fight him. Mike Jackson is perhaps best known as the man who was destroyed by Mickey Gall or who destroyed CM Punk. He failed to finish t…

Mike Jackson has today returned fire at the fighters calling him out, pondering why, if he is so bad, they want to fight him. Mike Jackson is perhaps best known as the man who was destroyed by Mickey Gall or who destroyed CM Punk. He failed to finish the pro-wrestling superstar and was seen as…

Continue Reading Mike Jackson: If I Suck, Why Would You Want To Fight Me? at MMA News.

Dean Barry Signs For Karate Combat After Getting DQ’d For Eye Gouging On UFC Debut

Dean Barry, Karate CombatDean Barry has penned a new deal with Karate Combat. Coming off the second loss of his professional career, former UFC fighter Dean Barry will be taking his combat sports chops to the karate promotion, hosting events since April 2018. Barry only has one outing under the UFC banner which came against Mike Jackson at […]

Dean Barry, Karate Combat

Dean Barry has penned a new deal with Karate Combat.

Coming off the second loss of his professional career, former UFC fighter Dean Barry will be taking his combat sports chops to the karate promotion, hosting events since April 2018. Barry only has one outing under the UFC banner which came against Mike Jackson at UFC Fight Night 205 in April.

He ended up getting disqualified on his debut due to eye-gouging in the first round, effectively ruling him out of competition in the promotion.

Dean Barry’s controversial dismissal from the UFC

Following the controversial loss, Barry defended himself as he declined any intention of making contact with his opponent’s eyes and claimed it to only be an accident. He later issued a statement on his now-deleted Twitter account, speculating whether Jackson was actually badly hurt in the fight and suggested he took the easy way out.

“He didn’t want to continue fighting,” Barry said at the time (ht Irish Mirror). “Straight after the ref called the fight off he was fine. Both eyes opened perfectly even though he said he can’t open his eyes.”

Jackson fired back at Barry for his inflammatory comments.

“You’re trying to win at this point. You’re trying to look good. You’re trying to impress people. Whatever your strategy is. But it’s not a smart strategy.”

“That’s why he had to delete his Twitter, for being a dumb***. That all falls on him. He literally did all this to himself and he tries to blame me for quitting.”

Dean Barry signs with Karate Combat

While Barry’s brief stint in the UFC didn’t net him the results he was hoping for, Karate Combat president Adam Kovacs is excited to have the rising Irish prospect in his organization and even backed him to be a future champion.

“Dean Barry is a fighter we’ve had on the radar for a long time and he was also recommended to us by Georges St-Pierre himself, as GSP brought him in as a sparring partner when he was preparing to fight Michael Bisping for the UFC middleweight championship.”

“Dean is an outstanding karate fighter and we were delighted to see him reach the UFC himself.”

“He was unlucky with what happened there and you could say maybe even unfairly treated, but had been following Karate Combat the whole time and when he saw his friend Ross Levine winning the middleweight world title at our last event, he decided he wanted one of those belts for himself and reached out to us.”

“We got the deal done and I’m excited to see him debut at Karate Combat 35 on August 27 in Orlando, Florida. We already have one Irish champion. If Dean Barry goes on to win a belt then I guess it’s going to be true what they say: the Irish don’t come to take part, they come to take over!” (H/T Irish Mirror).

Dean Barry Details UFC Debut Backlash: ‘People Told Me To Drop Dead’

Dean Barry has detailed the extent of the hate that he received in the aftermath of his UFC debut defeat to Mike Jackson last month. At UFC Vegas 54, the long-planned bout between Barry and Jackson went down. With the pair colliding in the main card opener, the promotion and the fans would’ve been hoping…

Continue Reading Dean Barry Details UFC Debut Backlash: ‘People Told Me To Drop Dead’ at MMA News.

Dean Barry has detailed the extent of the hate that he received in the aftermath of his UFC debut defeat to Mike Jackson last month.

At UFC Vegas 54, the long-planned bout between Barry and Jackson went down. With the pair colliding in the main card opener, the promotion and the fans would’ve been hoping for an entertaining start to the night. Instead, they were greeted with two illegal exchanges and a disqualification.

After first landing a nasty low blow on “The Truth” courtesy of a spinning kick that strayed south of the border, the fight was halted again soon after, this time for the last time. Following a deep eye poke, the bout was waved off and Jackson had his hand raised via disqualification.

Ireland’s Barry hasn’t had it easy with canceled bouts, and so to see his debut in the UFC, which marked just his sixth professional fight, end in such disastrous fashion was a real shame. But the defeat and a quick release from the promotion weren’t the only things that “The Sniper” had to deal with.

Following the result, Barry was met with some horrendous abuse online, which even led to him disabling his social media accounts, as he detailed during a recent appearance on Sherdog’s The Sheehan Show.

“Everything gets to you bro, I’m a f*cking human being. Seeing that sh*t, even just after the fight, some of the stuff people were saying about me kids and all that,” said Barry. “People saying they hope my kid has no daddy, and that I drop dead. And, ‘I’m gonna rape your son while your missus watches.’ All this disgusting sh*t, and that’s why I deactivated my medias. I was like, ‘I don’t need to read that sh*t.’

“I know who I am, I know it wasn’t the best performance, but how dare people think they can say that about somebody. And then if it upsets you, ‘Ah, this fella is a p*ssy,’ you know what I mean? I’m a f*cking human being, bro,” added Barry.

A lot of the backlash centered around the way in which the defeat came about, with some accusing Barry of deliberately poking Jackson in the eye. According to the 29-year-old, that theory makes no sense.

Barry: Why Would I Deliberately Eye Poke Someone I Was About To KO?

Further in the interview, Barry addressed claims that he purposely attempted to compromise Jackson’s eye inside the Apex on April 23.

Prior to the stoppage, Barry was clearly having more success on the feet and appeared to have hurt his American counterpart on multiple occasions. With that in mind, the Dublin native suggested that there’s no logic or basis to claims that his indiscretions were planned or deliberate.

“I went in to kill mode there, had him against the fence, I was teeing off on him… I just saw red. I was like, ‘I’m finishing him.’ … I had him rocked, and he grabbed onto me,” recalled Barry. “I grabbed him to clinch, ’cause I was like, ‘I’m finishing him here.’ I was gonna push him off me to knock him out, and as I was doing it, I tried to frame off this way (leans right), but I couldn’t even for the life of me see my fingers near his eyes, ’cause I was trying to push him back to hit him with my right hand.

“The thing people are saying, ‘You deliberately done it.’ I’m like, ‘Why the f*ck would I deliberately poke someone in the eye I was about to knock out on my UFC debut?’ On my worst night, that was the worst night of my life and I was still piecing him up,” continued Barry. “I was about to finish the man, why would I stick me fingers in his eye? Even the spinning kick, it was an accident, he’s way taller than me.”

Having made a quick entry and disappointing exit from the Octagon, Barry will have the chance to register a fast rebound under the Titan FC banner. Having competed in the promotion both in 2019 and 2021, the Irishman will return to face Julio Cesar Chaves in a lightweight bout on June 3.

As well as bouncing back from his DQ loss last month, “The Sniper” will be looking to begin his road to a second opportunity on MMA’s biggest stage.

What did you make of Dean Barry’s DQ loss to Mike Jackson at UFC Vegas 52?

Continue Reading Dean Barry Details UFC Debut Backlash: ‘People Told Me To Drop Dead’ at MMA News.

Report | Dean Barry Released From The UFC Following Last Month’s Promotional Debut

Dean BarryDublin striker, Dean Barry has been handed his official release from the UFC this Wednesday evening, despite featuring just last month in a UFC Vegas 52 preliminary card opener against Mike Jackson in his first fight under the banner of the organization. Dean Barry, a native of Tallaght, and trainee of Team Ryano under head […]

Dean Barry

Dublin striker, Dean Barry has been handed his official release from the UFC this Wednesday evening, despite featuring just last month in a UFC Vegas 52 preliminary card opener against Mike Jackson in his first fight under the banner of the organization.

Dean Barry, a native of Tallaght, and trainee of Team Ryano under head coach, Andy Ryan, had previously signed with the UFC last year ahead of a projected debut on ‘Fight Island’ against Jackson, before he was ultimately released from the organization.

Resigned to the UFC following a first round knockout win over Drew Lipton at Titan FC 73, Barry made his awaited Octagon debut back in April at UFC Vegas 52, suffering a first round disqualification loss against Jackson after an eye gouge left the latter unable to continue beyond the foul.

The pairing came as a rather topsy-turvy outing for both overall, with Barry penalized earlier for a pair of low groin strikes, courtesy of a spinning back kick, and then a round kick which landed low on Jackson.

Dean Barry has been handed his walking papers following last month’s debut DQ loss

However, prior to the eye gouge – which was deemed intentional, Barry had stunned Jackson at the fence with strikes, resulting in a disqualification loss as Barry fell to 4-2 off the back of his welterweight debut with the organization. 

Per an initial report from MMA Fighting reporters, Damon Martin, and Guilherme Cruz this Wednesday evening, Barry has since been handed his release from the UFC following his organizational debut loss against Jackson.

“Dean Barry has been released from the UFC, per multiple sources confirmed to myself and @guicruzzz (Guilherme Cruz),” Damon Martin tweeted. “Barry suffered a DQ loss in his debut fight with Mike Jackson. Full story coming later to @MMAFighting.”

Following the loss, Barry, who has since deleted his Twitter account, gained flak from fans and critics of his performance, when he claimed that Jackson had taken the easy way out of the fight despite suffering an eye gouge. 

“To be honest with you, I thought he (Mike Jackson) took the easy way out there,” Dean Barry said in a video posted on his social media. “Didn’t want to stay, didn’t want to continue fighting. Even when I kicked him low, he was talking on the ground to me for ages. Like, if you get hit in the nuts, you can’t be talking like that. Same with the eye poke. Straight after the ref called the fight off, he was fine. Both eyes open perfectly. He said he can’t open his eyes.”

Dean Barry Released From UFC Weeks After DQ Loss To Mike Jackson

Dean Barry’s stay with the UFC ended up being short-lived, as he’s been reportedly released from the promotion two weeks after a disqualification loss. The news of Barry’s release was first reported by MMA Fighting. Barry’s UFC debut came to a screeching halt after eye-gouging Mike Jackson just minutes into the fight. Before earning a…

Continue Reading Dean Barry Released From UFC Weeks After DQ Loss To Mike Jackson at MMA News.

Dean Barry’s stay with the UFC ended up being short-lived, as he’s been reportedly released from the promotion two weeks after a disqualification loss.

The news of Barry’s release was first reported by MMA Fighting.

Barry’s UFC debut came to a screeching halt after eye-gouging Mike Jackson just minutes into the fight. Before earning a knockdown and committing the foul, he threw a spinning back kick to Jackson’s groin that briefly stopped the action.

Jackson opted to continue fighting and Barry’s second foul ended up bringing the fight to a close and handing him a disqualification loss.

Barry and Jackson were supposed to fight on two separate occasions in 2021, but each fighter had to withdraw one time apiece. Before making his UFC debut, he earned a first-round knockout over Drew Lipton at Titan FC 73 last December.

Barry had been hyped as one of the top Irish prospects following vicious finishes over the likes of Abdulla Al Bousheiri in UAE Warriors, and over Corey Samuels at Titan FC 55.

Entering the fight with Barry, Jackson hadn’t competed since his fight against CM Punk at UFC 225 in 2018. The disqualification win over Barry was the first victory of his professional career.

As a 29-year-old prospect, Barry could get picked up by another promotion sooner rather than later and may work his way back into good graces with the UFC.

Do you think it was right for the UFC to release Dean Barry after one fight?

Continue Reading Dean Barry Released From UFC Weeks After DQ Loss To Mike Jackson at MMA News.