Jake Paul's back-up opponent Mike Perry has insisted he is ready to fight the YouTube star if Tommy Fury withdraws.
Paul will finally step in the ring with bitter rival Fury on February 26 in Saudi Arabia in what is set to be the toughest test of both fighters' careers. The 'Problem Child'' has beaten the likes of former UFC stars Tyron Woodley and Anderson Silva but will now look to prove he can beat an opponent with a natural background in boxing.
Several other fighters were considered alongside Fury as a potential opponent for Paul including Nate Diaz and bare-knuckle boxer Perry who previously fought in the UFC. Perry previously showed off a signed contract teasing a fight, and has now insisted he will be ready to also fight Paul if he beats Fury.
“I’d be ready to go at the last minute if necessary,” Perry told MMA Fighting. “I think that’s why they announced I’m the backup because it’s a foolproof plan. Mike Perry would be ready to show up and fight. The thing is with the Paul brothers and the Fury’s, too, it’s a business and they’re choosing to do business with me.
"Because of my past, my history, I always show up and I’m down for a fight and I give it all I got. That’s something you can count on. I’m just a dirty little tramp who was ready to go drop the hammer on them. It’s no big deal. I believe I will have opportunities and there are fights for me to have. I think I’m the tougher fight for any guy in any competition.
"I’m out here giving it my all. I don’t have any quit in me. Anybody calls on me, they know what time it is. I’m showing up. It should happen. Let’s go. If he beats Tommy Fury, then someone needs to stop him and it’s me. Let’s go. I’ll shut him down.”
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A huge reason for his replacement is down to Paul's previous scheduled fights with Fury collapsing at short notice. The Briton was forced to first pull out of their planned December 2021 meeting after breaking a rib, before being banned from travelling to the US for their second scheduled showdown last August.
However Fury has suggested he is ready to settle the scores and believes he can finally move on and end Paul's career. "There is no chance or no way that he can beat me in a fight," Fury told BT Sport Boxing. "I am not an MMA fighter, he does not know how to fight.
"I've got a plan from A-Z for this man, there is a million things he is going to fall for. This man is jumping at the deep end, you want to pay me a heap of money to fight Jake Paul. Christmas has come early for me, sign me up. It is going to be the end of an idiot."
