Dean Barry (4-1) has an intriguing UFC debut matchup on his hands for many reasons. Visa Issues have delayed a matchup three times with Mike Jackson (0-1), The UFC’s resident easy fight who beat up former wrestler CM Punk but got his win overturned due to a positive cannabis test. After two years on the octagon sideline and a can crushed in Titan FC, “The Sniper” will finally make his debut at UFC Vegas 52: Lemos vs. Andrade.
Barry was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1992 and started competing in martial arts at his Mother’s request to lose a few pounds at age 11. Mom was head coach early on to Dean and his three kickboxing brothers, moving dining room tables to have impromptu matches. Mother Barry even competed and won her only kickboxing match, coached by Dean and brother Shane.
Dean wanted a new combat challenge after capturing junior European and World Titles for Team Ireland before winning senior Worlds five times. He found it in martial arts’ most popular discipline currently, MMA, and instantly fell in love with the challenge while training with legends Georges St. Pierre and Firaz Zahabi at Tristar in Montreal, Canada, and Owen Roddy with SBG Charlestown.
Barry went 3-1 in his only MMA bouts pro or amateur and the UFC brass saw something they liked. He was signed in late 2020 but the aforementioned visa difficulty delayed his debut until now. Dean finished a fourth foe in the process to stay fresh and now his matchup with Mike Jackson (0-1) is on! It’s rare to see a fighter with such little experience signed to MMA’s biggest organization but UFC matchmakers want to prop him up with this seemingly easy matchup. The pressure is on for “The Sniper” as he must win this contest going down Saturday, 4/23, at UFC Vegas 52.
Dean “The Sniper” Barry | 4-1 | 5’10 170 lbs. | Age 29 | Reach N/A” | Orthodox Stance | Fighting Out of Charlestown, Dublin, Ireland
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