Over the first minute of the final round of their UFC 201 bantamweight encounter, Francisco Rivera managed to goad Erik Perez into the sort of wild brawl in which he thrives, bringing the crowd at Philips Arena to their feet.
For most of the rest of the fight, however, Perez appeared to be a fighter who is finally maturing into the sort of competitor he's long been expected to become. Perez won via unanimous deicision with a pair of 30-26s and a 29-28 on Saturday night in Atlanta.
"I've learned to fight with my mind and my heart," Perez (16-6) said after his third win in his past four fights.