It looks like Michael Page will not just come right out and say that Bellator’s top mixed martial arts fighters in the welterweight division are avoiding him.
However, this up-and-coming MMA star recently admitted that he is already getting a bit frustrated in his journey to seal a deal for the right fights.
“It gets a bit annoying sometimes. You get into this sport to challenge yourself against the best and sho
w what you can do,” Page said during a recent interview with MMAjunkie.
“Venom”, as what other MMA fans are starting to call him, has managed to gain a lot of attention for his unusual striking technique. This fighting style had Page win seven out of his eight fights by a finish.
With all these wins, it looks like Page is now experiencing the same frustrations like other fighters. It may look like there’s no more fighters left to face in the lower ranks, but it’s hard to land a shot to fight higher-ranked contenders.
This unfortunate case has never been more prominent when Michael Page’s fight with Charlie Ontiveros. Apparently, Page didn’t know that he would be fighting against Charlie Ontiveros, who has a record of 6-3, until three weeks ago, after a couple of rumors about contenders getting lined up, but didn’t push through.
“I can’t say fighters are ducking me, because it’s the type of thing you can’t prove. This is the type of situation you see a lot when you first break in, but you don’t expect to see after you get to a certain point,” he said.
While it would be easy to watch Friday night’s matchup as Michael Page waits his chance to go against higher-ranked fighters at 170, “Venom” says that he is doing his best not to get carried away by that kind of thinking.
With Ontiveros being his opponent, Michael Page is actually fighting someone who has one pro MMA fight than him. Ontiverous has been in the Legacy Fighting Championship his entire MMA career. Since 2012, he has won nine fights in the said promotion. With this record, Page said that he will not let his contender’s lack of hype derail his fighting approach.
“I’m going to respect any fighter who steps into the cage with me. It doesn’t matter if his name isn’t as big as mine. This is his first chance in the spotlight, and he’s been working hard. It would be a disservice to both him and I if I acted like he didn’t belong in there with me,” Page said.
He also revealed that he is hoping this fight would clear up any doubts that he can fight a top-ranked fighter.
“I guess I need to make a statement. I already have a highlight reel, maybe if I go out there one more time and put on a show, people will finally realize I’m legit,” he added.