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UFC Denver: Did Mike Perry Set a Trap For Donald Cerrone?

Mike Perry moved his camp to Jackson – Wink MMA long before he was ever set to face Donald Cerrone, but did “Platinum” see a fight with “Cowboy” materializing down the road? And pull a fast one in sparring?

Perry decided to change things up this past spring, following his loss to Max Griffin in February, and headed out from Florida to New Mexico, as a means to train at the aforementioned gym. In July, the heavy-handed welterweight worked his way to a split decision win over Paul Felder, after training for the bout at Jackson – Wink MMA.

Well, fast forward to today, and Perry is set to fight Cerrone this Saturday at UFC Fight Night 139, which is going down in Denver. After the bout was booked, tensions rose between Cerrone and Mike Winkeljohn, and “Cowboy” has since split from the renowned gym.

As a result, Perry’s been fielding plenty of questions about Cerrone’s departure, and his relationship with the star. Case in point, recently “Platinum” had this to say about his next opponent, and his previous sparring sessions with Cerrone (quotes via MMA Junkie):

“That wasn’t his gym, man,” Perry said. “He would come there sometimes to try and steal some bodies to bring to BMF Ranch so he could train over there because everybody was interested in going and hanging out with ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone at his ranch and seeing if they could get on a boat and (expletive). He looked out, and he did those things with me.”

“When we sparred, I took it so easy on him, and I think that he thinks that I’m an easy win to get the most wins in UFC history, and that’s just not a fact,” Perry said. “Why have I not been finished? Why have I not been KO’d? I’ve been dropped. I’ve been bleeding since the beginning of the fight and been pouring blood on my opponent’s faces after.”

Did Perry take it easy because he thought he might fight Cerrone someday? Did he plan to fight Cerrone all along? And as a result, he didn’t want to showcase what he can really do in the cage? It’s possible.

Of course, it’s also possible that Perry was taking it a bit easy because it was just a sparring session, and he saw no need to go full out. Cerrone boosters, however, might question whether Perry is just saying this, as an attempt to get in “Cowboy’s” head.

All this aside, this bout has all the makings of being an outstanding, entertaining fight. It’s definitely a scrap that should be one any fan’s must-watch list.

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