Erik Perez is back.
The Mexican star is set to take on Peru’s Enrique Barzola on March 10 as part of the line-up for Bellator 292 in San Jose. The bout will be contested at bantamweight.
Two people with knowledge of the booking recently informed MMA Junkie of the matchup, but asked to remain anonymous as the promotion has yet to make an official announcement.
Perez (20-8 MMA, 1-2 BMMA) hasn’t competed in well over a year. He was last seen in action when he defeated Blaine Shutt in a unanimous decision back in May 2021 at Bellator 258. Perez was supposed to return in April 2022 against Cee Jay Hamilton, but was forced to withdraw due to undisclosed reasons.”Goyito,” a pioneer for MMA in Mexico, is 6-2 since leaving the UFC in 2014.
Barzola (18-7-2 MMA, 2-2 BMMA) looks to rebound from two consecutive defeats, the first time he has back-to-back losses in his career. “El Fuerte” lost to Juan Archuleta and Magomed Magomedov in his most recent outings. Prior to that, Barzola had a 2-0 start in Bellator, defeating former champion Darrion Caldwell and Nikita Mikhailov.