Backyard Boxing

Among Bryant Perrella’s youthful passions was “backyard boxing,” a hobby which led him to embrace the sport as a teenager.

Nicknamed “Stallion” as a 12-year-old, Perrella often waged battle against older young men behind a high school library in Lehigh Acres, Florida. 

“I played some basketball, baseball and some soccer, but I’ve been doing backyard boxing since I was like eight-years-old,” said Perrella, an Italian-American native of Fort Myers, Florida, whose alias was bestowed by friends and opponents after “Italian Stallion” Rocky Balboa.

“People from Lehigh Senior High started calling me the ‘Stallion’ because I was bringing the gloves out there behind the library. They would know I would bring my gloves there every day and have fight clubs at the library after school.”

Perrella first entered a gym at the age of 15, producing an amateur record of 70-9, receiving an invitation to participate in the 2011 Olympic trials, and falling to eventual tournament winner, Errol Spence. 

Perrella earned gold medals at the Sunshine State Games in 2007, 2008 and 2009, a runner-up finish in the World Ringside Tournament (2009),  and a bronze medal at the National Police Athletic League (PAL) Association Tournament (2010).

“I was able to test my skills against some of the best fighters the United States had at welterweight,” said Perrella, whose amateur victories included one over Regis Prograis. “I did a lot more than hold my own. I gained a lot of confidence from that.”

Perrella’s “Goodfella” nickname was also developed from his Italian-American heritage and the fact that “I bring bad intentions.”

“I was with my father just walking around, and Goodfella popped up, and we were like, ‘Goodfella Perrella, that has a good ring to it.’ The nickname means a lot because I want to be a good person,” said Perrella. 

“I strive to be a good person and shed a positive light through what I do. That’s my demeanor: I’m a Goodfella outside of the ring, but I’m a Goodfella gangster inside the ring. I’m going to be bringing it, and there’s going to be fireworks 100 percent.” 

Sending Shockwaves

A 6-foot-1 southpaw, Perrella turned professional as a 19-year-old in 2012 with a 30-second TKO of Michael Wicker (February) and a fourth-round TKO of Arturo Lopez (March) which represented two of 13 stoppages in his initial 14 victories.

While Perrella’s lone victory of 2013 was a four-round majority decision over Isaac Holder (February), 2014 featured a pair of first-round knockouts, another in the second and also a sixth-round TKO. 

Before being stopped by Perrella in the first and sixth rounds, Benito Tovar (May 2014) was 3-0-1 (3 KOs), and Victor Fonseca (September), 9-3-1 (7 KOs). Perrella stopped all five opponents in 2015. 

In 2016, Perrella won two of three bouts, scoring a pair of second-round knockouts over Ramon Ayala (January) and David Grayton (June).  A southpaw, Grayton entered at 14-0 (10 KOs) before becoming Perrella’s 11th straight stoppage win. 

“I was motivated more than ever [for Grayton.] Everything was perfect. I feel like I performed flawlessly. I don’t consider myself a power puncher who is going to knock everyone out,” said Perrella. 

“But there’s an advantage being a southpaw. I see myself as a pure boxer who does a lot of subtle things, but I'm blessed to have the strength to hit somebody, sending shock waves through them.”

Perrella’s first loss was in September 2016 by fourth-round TKO to future champion Yordenis Ugas, this, after having suffered from a right leg injury sustained during training camp. 

Making Changes

“Goodfella” rebounded in December 2017 with an eight-round unanimous decision over southpaw Alex Martin -- who entered at 13-2 (6 KOs) -- but lost a 10-round majority decision to left-handed former champion Luis Collazo in August 2018.

Perrella won twice more in 2019 by eight-round unanimous decision over Breidis Prescott (February) and a third-round TKO over Domonique Dolton (July) before falling by controversial 10th-round TKO to Abel Ramos in February 2020 while ahead on the cards with one second remaining in the fight. 

“I actually hurt my left hand in the second round [against Prescott], so I had to take some steam off the left and use it kind of more as a popping shot [and] a scoring blow. I just stuck to my right hand, moved to my right laterally and kept using my jab to dominate,” said Perrella, who was dejected after losing to Ramos. 

“I was rocked, but felt like I could’ve continued. I mean, one second left. You gotta let me continue. It’s ridiculous. It’s like Meldrick Taylor and Chavez...I was winning every round convincingly...There was one second left in the 10th round. It’s like a needle in the haystack.”

Perrella returned to action on April 17, 2021, in a 154-pound bout against former WBC World Champion Tony “Superbad” Harrison on FOX PBC Fight Night and on FOX Deportes from Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall in Los Angeles.

The tactical showdown saw both Harrison and Perrella have strong moments early. Harrison found a place for his right hand in the second round, connecting with multiple power shots that created a welt under Perrella’s left eye. Perrella bounced back strongly in round three with a flurry of activity and accurate combinations that appeared to hinder Harrison’s aggressiveness.

While Harrison had success with a consistent jab, Perrella was just as consistent countering with his right hands and never allowing his hard-hitting opponent to put him in danger. Moving up in weight and debuting with new trainer Roy Jones Jr., Perrella was able to finish the fight strong with the final result being a 12-round split draw. Scores were 16-112 for Harrison, a 117-111 score for Perrella and a 114-114 draw.

Perrella would fight to another draw in April 2022, this time against unbeaten Kevin Salgado. The tactical affair saw Perrella establish his jab from the outset, a punch he landed 64 times throughout the contest. Perrella, who is trained by Hall of Famer Roy Jones Jr., combined consistent movement with the jab, which slowed Salgado from putting together consistent offense.  
 
“I thought my game plan and execution was great,” said Perrella. “I boxed smart. I broke him down. I’m not going to run from him. He was just winging big shots any time I would step in just trying to knock me out with one punch. I kept the jab in his face. Jabs to the body. Left hands. I hurt him. Everything was going great and it looked like I was sweeping all the rounds.”

All three judges agreed on only three of the ten rounds throughout the closely contested duel, eventually leading to the split-draw by scores of 97-93 for Perrella, 96-94 for Salgado and the 95-95 draw. After the fight, both men believed they had done enough to have their hand raised.
 
“I was shocked by the decision,” said Perrella. “Two draws in a row. I put my all into this and I get robbed at the end of the day. It’s a tough pill to swallow. I easily out boxed him. He barely landed any punches. I don’t know what more I can do. I did my best. It is what it is.”