In November 2020, the announcement of the UFC signing then 3-1 fighter Dean Barry was met by one of the most unique reactions I’ve witnessed in 13 years covering the Irish scene.
Be it legend, journeyman, jobber, media member, manager or fan, they all had the same question: "Why did Dean Barry get signed by the UFC?"
Usually, by the time an Irish professional gets signed by the world’s flagship MMA promotion they have a substantial reputation on the continental scene. Most of Ireland’s UFC fighters had claimed European titles before getting the call-up.
It’s happened once before, with Irish middleweight Charlie Ward, who was similarly signed at 3-1 in 2016. When Ward put pen to paper, he made no secret that Conor McGregor - then featherweight champion and at the height of his power - was the driving force behind the deal.
The confusion only thickened when it emerged that 29-year-old Barry would first take on MMA reporter and fighter Mike Jackson, who boasts a record of 0-1 and is approaching four years of inactivity.
Jackson was last trotted out during the UFC’s attempt to turn former WWE superstar CM Punk to MMA.
Jackson’s decision win on the night was later overturned to a no contest after he tested positive for marijuana, but even before that, Dana White saw no future for him with the organisation.
"I don’t know what that guy did for a living before we gave him this shot, but whatever it was he needs to go back and do that again. He’s 0-2 as far as I’m concerned," said White in the aftermath of the 2018 clash.
#UFC President Dana White is not a fan of "idiot" Mike Jackson
— SI Ringside (@SI_Ringside) June 10, 2018
"He's 0-2 as far as I'm concerned." #UFC225 pic.twitter.com/8g8HlXZi52
Barry's fight with Jackson fell out twice - visa issues on both sides of the tilt obscured the first two bookings - before it was slated again for tonight's card at the UFC Apex.
In the meantime, Barry competed on a Titan FC card in December. He obliterated short-notice replacement Drew Lipton in 21 seconds, handing him his 31st loss in 37 pro outings. However, fighting for a different promotion forced questions as to whether he was still a UFC target.
Two weeks ago, the UFC confirmed Barry vs. Jackson for 23 April in Las Vegas. The question on most people's lips became: "Who is Dean Barry’s manager?"
The Deal
With 15 years of experience in the business, and with names like UFC champion Rose Namajunas on his books, Brian Butler is no stranger to striking deals for fighters. He won’t sing his own praises, but it is believed that he is the most crucial element in terms of Barry’s UFC signing.
As far as Butler is concerned, Barry’s background as a decorated WAKO kickboxer and his spectacular striking style is what made him stand out from the crowd - despite his lack of experience.
Directly before his initial signing, Barry showcased his knockout power with a thudding stoppage of a counterpart with twice as much experience as him, Abdulla Al Bousheiri, which Butler believes put the wheels in motion for his signing to the UFC.
What a shot. Dean "The Sniper" Barry crushes Abdulla Al Bousheiri with a left hook. KO1 #UAEWarriors13 pic.twitter.com/nModHCv5IC
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) September 25, 2020
"The knockout of Abdulla certainly put a stamp on the fact that he has the skills to beat people with more experience than him, but it’s also his style of fighting," Butler told RTE Sport.
"He has a spectacular striking style and if he can blend it with MMA it can be very exciting, like we’ve seen with Stephen 'Wonderboy’ Thompson - that’s what’s got him on the UFC’s radar so early."
Butler has kept UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby abreast of all the developments with Barry. Shelby was a big fan of the knockout and if he wanted Jackson to compete again he would need an opponent with a similar level of experience.
"Mike Jackson also doesn’t have a lot of experience, so there weren’t a lot of people that Mike Jackson could face that commissions would even come close to approving," Butler explained.
"That narrowed down who Sean could bring in to fight him a lot. He had to pick someone with not that much experience who he thought had potential to carry on with the promotion. Dean was at the top of Sean’s list when it came to that criteria."
The Fight
Butler believes a win over Jackson and an extra fight on Barry’s record will open him up many more bouts that commissions will approve. Some have speculated whether Barry has been brought in to provide Jackson with an emphatic exit from the promotion due to the bad taste he left in White’s mouth in 2018.
But, given the absence of a professional win on Jackson’s record, does an empathic demolition job on Saturday night prove that Barry is UFC calibre?
Butler thinks he’s already proven that he is.
"The knockout of Abdulla [Al Bousheiri] proved that Dean is a high-level fighter," he said.
The bookmakers see Jackson as cannon fodder.
The Dublin kick-boxer is an awkward position because anything but a highlight reel knockout or sublime submission will likely be viewed as an unmitigated disaster. And even if he does exactly what’s expected of him, many will discredit Jackson as an adversary.
Again, Butler doesn’t see it that way: "You can never write an opponent off. Jackson is bigger than Dean. Dean had to go up to 170 for this fight and he is not a natural welterweight. There was even talk at one point of Dean competing at 145, but I think he’s best suited at 155."
There is ample anticipation in Ireland ahead of Barry’s debut, partly due to the rough road he’s endured since he was signed 18 months ago. After his first two bookings with the UFC were scrapped, he was forced to pool together his life savings to relaunch his visa process, which eventually was granted to him.
Ahead of Ward’s UFC debut in Belfast in 2016, he was an underdog and was stopped in the first by then undefeated Abdul Razak Alhassan. Barry, on the other hand, is one of the biggest favourites on tonight’s card in Las Vegas.
The Irish masses will hope he’s worthy of the short odds.
If not, we’ll be right back to square one:
"Why did Dean Barry get signed by the UFC?"
