After delivering three rounds of violence in the co-main event of UFC Uruguay on Saturday, there are no hard feelings between Mike Perry and Vicente Luque.
The two welterweights traded leather through three rounds, resulting in a razor-thin decision. Ultimately, it was Luque who emerged victorious with a split decision nod (29-28, 29-28, 28-29).
Perry, on the other hand, left with his fourth loss in his last six fights and a badly broken nose.
According to an update by ESPN’s Ariel Helwani, Perry’s manager Abraham Kawa said his fighter had an hour-long surgery to repair his battered nose. The operation was successful, but Perry will be sidelined for a significant amount of time as his nose cannot be hit for “at least 6 months.”
The recovery process will obviously hinder Perry’s activity in the UFC. Since making his debut in 2016, the welterweight has competed in the Octagon 11 times. He has fought three times per year since his signing, but will now be unable to do so in 2019 — in which he competed twice — because of the surgery.
Perry’s nose also delays the training session he plans to hold with the man that broke it.
In a post on Instagram, Perry thanked Luque for the battle that earned each of them a Fight of the Night bonus. He also extended an invitation to help Luque “beat these wrestlers” that the UFC’s welterweight division has no shortage of.
Luque accepted the proposition in a comment on the post.
“Look forward to train with you! I’m sure we can learn a lot from each other,” Luque wrote. “No doubt you’re the toughest man I’ve fought and we showed everyone out there what fighting is about. Respect.”
The win was Luque’s sixth in a row, but Perry’s toughness broke the Brazilian’s streak of five-straight stoppage wins. Luque has yet to be ranked or face a ranked opponent in the UFC.