Mike Perry has reportedly re-signed with the UFC, bringing the veteran striker back to the promotion more than five years after his last appearance inside the Octagon. His manager, Malki Kawa, was the one to relay the news.
The move lands at a moment when Perry is back in MMA after a year away from competition in the sport, but it also reaches back to the run that first made him a UFC name. He joined the promotion in 2016 as an unbeaten prospect, debuted on the prelims for UFC 202, and won his first two bouts by stoppage to move to 9-0. That early burst helped turn him into a familiar face quickly, even before he settled into a long stretch of 15 UFC appearances between 2016 and 2021.
Perry’s path through the promotion was never tidy. After those first wins, he dropped a decision to Alan Jouban, then put together a pair of Performance of the Night-winning finishes in 2017 before his run eventually faded. He left the UFC after a unanimous decision loss to Daniel Rodriguez in 2021, departing on a two-fight skid and closing the book on a stint that lasted from breakout prospect to battle-tested veteran.
The reported return is still surprising because Perry was not coming off a clean reset. Less than three months before this report, he took an upset loss at Duel Arena 1, where he was originally supposed to meet Dillon Danis before Brandon Jenkins stepped in on short notice and stopped him with strikes after Perry injured his shoulder in the first round. That is the kind of detail that makes this comeback feel abrupt rather than planned, even for a fighter known for chaos.
What comes next is the question the report does not answer: when Perry actually gets back in the Octagon. His re-signing gives the UFC a recognizable fan favorite and one of the sport’s more unique personalities, but until a bout is booked, the comeback remains a headline more than a calendar date.
