MMA fighter Michael “Venom” Page, who became a free agent after a 10-year run with Bellator MMA, has signed a contract with UFC and will fight Kevin Holland at UFC 299.
Las Vegas and London have an eight-hour time gap. So, for Michael “Venom” Page and other hardcore MMA enthusiasts, late nights are the norm.
However, when you’re in talks with the UFC for a new contract, like Page was last weekend, the rulebook goes out the window.
Page confessed on The MMA Hour, “I didn’t sleep a wink for 48 hours.”
After a decade with Bellator MMA, Page became a free agent this summer. This led to many late-night texts and negotiations. He was a big hit in Bellator, so he had many options. But he had a clear favorite.
“The UFC was my top pick, but it felt good to be in demand, if you know what I mean,” he admitted.
Page’s undeniable charisma, both in and out of the cage, and his thrilling style, filled with explosive knockouts, made him a hot commodity. He also took some advice from three-time Bellator champ Michael Chandler when considering a move to the UFC. Chandler quickly became a UFC sensation due to his high-octane fighting style.
“Seeing someone else take the leap before me and how well he was received was encouraging,” Page said. “Chandler is an incredible athlete and a joy to watch in the cage. Regardless of the outcome, he always gives it his all.”
But wanting a UFC contract and actually securing one are two different things. Page wasn’t your average free agent, and he wasn’t about to accept just any offer.
“I know I’ve stirred up a lot of buzz and made a lot of noise outside — the MMA media knows who I am,” he stated. “You can tell when I go places and people recognize me. It’s interesting that I could be in the same room as another UFC fighter, and more people are interested in me. I figured that if I tested free agency, I would attract that kind of attention.”
Page had bumped into UFC CEO Dana White a few times, but they’d never really talked. When they finally did, Page found White to be quite different from his usual fiery press conference persona. So, it was just a matter of reaching a mutually agreeable deal, and quickly.
“Because of the time difference, I was up all night. Audie [Attar] would message me updates, and I’d respond. It was a constant back-and-forth,” Page explained. “I had a long day Saturday with my family, announcing that it’s confirmed, it should be announced after the UFC. Then I stayed up to watch the UFC because we had trailers we wanted to release as soon as he announced it.”
Despite the rush to finalize everything, the actual announcement was rather low-key. At UFC 296‘s post-fight press conference, White announced Page’s fight with Kevin Holland at UFC 299, then opened the floor for questions.
“Getting everything done was a whirlwind,” Page said. “We wanted to finalize everything so we could announce it, and I had a feeling it would be announced at the UFC post-press conference.
“But he announced it so casually — it was intriguing to me, more than anything. I’m not sure who said it, but it was like, ‘You’re just going to drop it like that?’ I kind of liked that he did it so nonchalantly, and then it caused a big stir afterward.”
The moment White broke the news, Page and his team were on social media promoting it. They had prepared a teaser video for his decision to sign with the UFC or PFL, the apparent front-runners in his free agency, and made graphics of him in UFC gear.
“So yeah, a long 48 hours,” Page said. “People were like, ‘I don’t know how you’re still up,’ but when it comes to work, I’m ready.”
The announcement of Page’s UFC debut may have been understated, but he assures that when he steps into the cage, no further hype will be necessary.
“The storm isn’t now,” he said. “It feels like there’s a big storm around my name. But the real storm is when I get in the cage, trust me.”