fight by unanimous decision. Pérez next faced Francisco Rivera on July 30, 2016 at UFC 201. He won the back-and-forth fight by unanimous decision. Pérez faced Felipe Arantes on November 5, 2016 at The Ultimate Fighter Latin America 3 Finale. He was awarded a split decision victory. Perez signed with Combate Americas on October 31, 2017 after fighting out his contract with the UFC. Combate Americas Following his departure from the UFC, Pérez signed a multi-fight contract with Combate Americas. On March 15, 2018 it was announced that Pérez would be fighting against top-ranked fighter in Texas, David "DJ" Fuentes. The fight took place on April 20, and Erik won the fight by knockout. Pérez was expected to headline Combate Americas Mexico vs. USA against John Castañeda on October 13, 2018, but the bout was postponed to a later date because Castaneda caught staph infection. Pérez then headlined Combate Americas Combate Monterrey on November 17, 2018 against Andres Ayala. He won the fight via rear-naked choke in the first round. Bellator MMA Following a two-fight stint at Combate Americas, Pérez signed a multi-fight deal with Bellator MMA. Pérez made his promotional debut against Toby Misech at Bellator 236 on December 20, 2019. He lost the fight via knockout in the first round. Pérez faced Josh Hill at Bellator 244 on August 21, 2020. He lost the fight by unanimous decision. Pérez was expected to face Brian Moore at Bellator 258 on May 7, 2021. However, Moore tested positive for COVID and pulled out of the bout. He was replaced by Blaine Shutt. Pérez won the bout via unanimous decision. Pérez was scheduled to face Brett Johns on October 16, 2021 at Bellator 268. However on October 5, it was announced that Perez was injured and the bout was scrapped. Pérez, replacing Jared Scoggins, was scheduled to face Cee Jay Hamilton on April 22, 2022 at Bellator 278. Pérez in turn pulled out of the bout and Hamilton was not rescheduled, instead being paid his show money, despite not weighing in or fighting. Pérez is scheduled to face Enrique Barzola on March 10, 2023 at Bellator 292. Championships and accomplishments Mixed martial arts Ultimate Fighting Championship Fastest knockout in bantamweight history (0:17) Second best takedown accuracy in bantamweight history (55.9%) Tenth best significant strike defense in bantamweight history (66.7%) Sixth most strikes landed in bantamweight history (666) Ranked eighth for least