"I'll always be a fan" - Bellator President Scott Coker shares a heartfelt post celebrating Michael 'Venom' Page's UFC deal
Scott Coker recently opened up about Michael 'Venom' Page signing a new deal with the UFC and shared a heartwarming post on social media celebrating the start of the former Bellator star's new journey.
Page is widely considered among the flashiest strikers in MMA and has established himself as a bonafide Bellator legend. After nine years in the promotion, the Englishman announced the end of his contract and became a free agent in July. After his exit from Bellator, many were eager to find out which promotion the striking savant rendered his services.
After months of speculation, UFC CEO Dana White announced last week that they had signed the coveted free agent and had already booked him for a blockbuster fight next year. Page has been booked to face perennial UFC welterweight contender Kevin Holland at UFC 299 on March 9 in Miami.
In a recent tweet, Bellator president Scott Coker shared his thoughts on Michael 'Venom' Page moving to the UFC and wrote:
"I've always viewed @Michaelpage247 as one of the most versatile, talented, and effective martial artists I've ever promoted. I'll always be a fan. Congratulations on your new deal with @UFC, I'll be watching your fight in Miami."
Michael 'Venom' Page offers a solution for curbing Colby Covington-esque trash-talking in UFC
Michael 'Venom' Page recently opened up about fighters resorting to trash-talking to sell their fights. The Englishman expressed dismay at the rising frequency of high-profile athletes like Colby Covington dishing out verbal low-blows at press conferences and offered a football-based solution to the problem.
In association football, an erring player is warned against repeating his illegal actions with a yellow card. If the player refuses to stick to the rules, the referee can pull out a red card, and the player in question is forced to leave the pitch as a penalty. The player may also be handed a multi-game ban depending on the seriousness of the offense.
Michael 'Venom' Page wants to incorporate a similar system in the UFC and other MMA promotions. In a recent interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour, 'MVP' stated that he hated fighters talking about their opponent's families and said:
"For me, I feel like the UFC could, you know, hand out fines. Just do something just to kind of alleviate so people don't [diss others]... Let's see how often you're going to want to do things like that. Like similar to a yellow card in football."
Catch Michael 'Venom' Page's comments below (14:17):