MIKE Perry is a popular but divisive figure in the world of MMA, having come under fire for racist and homophobic comments in the past.
And even his choice of coaching staff is controversial — he has previously named two girlfriends as cornerperson, including his now wife Latory Gonzalez.
Mike Perry fired all his coaches in the run-up to UFC Vegas 4, and only had one person in his corner when he took on Mickey Gall on June 27, 2020 — his beautiful girlfriend Latory Gonzalez.
She was brought up in Lubbock, Texas — where she attended the Lubbock Christian University.
The welterweight didn’t expect to receive instructions in between rounds from her during the fight, even telling Gonzalez to simply “sit there and enjoy the show”.
Ahead of the showdown, Perry explained: “I am going to have a coach in my corner, it just happens to be my girlfriend.
“She’s just going to be there to make me feel good and make me look good.
“If it even goes to the second round, it’s because I want to give her time to talk to me in the corner. I want her to give me a kiss and tell me to ‘go get him’.”
He added: “As we get closer, I see that little sparkle in her eye like I’m doing something impressive, and that just gives me more fire.
“On Saturday, I’m going to fight for her in front of her and not let anybody take anything from me.”
The unorthodox move paid off as Perry won a unanimous decision, bouncing back from consecutive defeats.
The fighter hailed Gonzalez his “queen” after she cornered him to victory against Gall.
At the time, Perry told ESPN post-fight that despite only going out with Gonzalez for a few months — who wrestled in school and trained in boxing — he had asked her years prior to that if she could corner him.
On Wednesday January 6, 2021, Gonzalez gave birth to the couple’s son, who they named Ocean.
The couple tied the knot in July 2023, with the UFC legend posting on Instagram: “What a beautiful time, just the beginning! Sky is the limit!
“I Love my wife @latoryperry, thankful for all of our friends and family that made it out to support us! God bless!”
[Jon Jones] grabbed my hand and brought our hands together and I picked [Latory] up and gave her a hug and said, ‘Let’s get out of here
Mike Perry
Gonzalez started dating Perry in 2020 following his divorce from Danielle Nickerson.
Perry credited UFC light-heavyweight Jon Jones for introducing him to Gonzalez.
He told CBS Sports: “So I walked in and Jon Jones saw me and he smiled.
“He looked to his right and he saw Latory and he grabbed her hand and he grabbed my hand.
“He might have grabbed mine first; it makes me feel better [if I say] he grabbed mine first.
“He grabbed my hand and brought our hands together and I picked her up and gave her a hug and said, ‘Let’s get out of here’.”
Perry’s ex-wife is tennis pro Danielle Nickerson.
Perry can be seen sparring with her in a video he released in January 2019 called ‘Platinum Punishment’.
Though he was taking the spar lightly, Perry walked Nickerson down while tapping her to the head and body.
Towards the end of the clip, Perry landed a left-hook to her body.
The UFC star’s then-wife stepped back before admitting defeat and taking a knee.
In good spirits, Nickerson got to her feet and hugged her husband before giving him a kiss as the sparring session came to an end.
Perry congratulated his her by saying: “Good job — give me some love.”
This wasn’t the first time Nickerson was involved with Perry’s training — she prepared the welterweights meals during his fight camp.
Perry also caused headlines before when he had Nickerson ringside as his cornerperson for a number of fights before they got married.
