Journalist Ariel Helwani shared his thoughts on Michael ‘Venom’ Page‘s UFC departure after going 5-1 in the promotion. Helwani believes that Page has several appealing options and can sign lucrative deals to continue his combat sports career.
Page, 39, earned a unanimous decision victory over Nursulton Ruziboev at UFC Paris last Saturday. It was his third consecutive win at middleweight and fourth consecutive win overall. However, ‘MVP’ had been criticized ahead of the fight due to his fighting style and for not taking many risks in his fights.
Although Dana White confirmed that the UFC will not pursue a new deal with Page, the Englishman was not bothered. He shared a photo on his Instagram account, along with a caption that made light of the reports about his future.
Page will not be able to achieve his goal of winning a UFC championship. However, Helwani believes Page has a lot of leverage and is in a great position.
Ariel Helwani Shares Honest Take on Michael ‘Venom’ Page’s UFC Exit
Ariel Helwani shared his honest assessment of what could be next for Michael ‘Venom’ Page now that he is no longer with the UFC.
Helwani believes that Page fighting out his contract gives him more leverage, as he can immediately explore free agency. Given the current landscape of the sport, the Canadian journalist believes ‘MVP’ can maximize his value.
“In the last five, six years, this is probably the best time to be a free agent in MMA. If [Page] was free this time last year, you would look around and go, ‘Wow, where are you going? You going to bare-knuckle? PFL’s not signing anyone, there’s nothing interesting happening,” Helwani said during The Ariel Helwani Show. “Now you’ve got two promotions that are very aggressive. Once PFL stopped signing people post-Francis [Ngannou], there wasn’t much out there.”
Helwani Names Potential Suitor for Page
While PFL, soon to be rebranded as MVP in January, stands out as an obvious potential destination, there are others that could be a suitor for Page. The former Bellator star could possibly reunite with Scott Coker, who is launching his new MMA promotion in the new year.
Another potential suitor for Page could also be RIZIN. Helwani named the Japanese-based promotion as a perfect fit for ‘MVP,’ particularly due to the emphasis on showmanship.
“RIZIN would love [Page]. Oh my God, could you imagine ‘MVP’ coming out? Oh yes, we haven’t even brought up RIZIN,” Helwani said during The Ariel Helwani Show. “Put ‘MVP’ on a New Year’s card. Give him the most grandiose entrance. He’s in a great spot. And it’s very rare to be that notable and be on a four-fight winning streak leaving the UFC.”
Helwani continued:
“It’ll be fine, he’ll be okay. He’s also 39. I can’t imagine he’ll have that many years left. It’s not like he’s 31,” he said. “He’s got maybe three, four, five fights left and maybe he dabbles in boxing. He’ll be fine.”
RIZIN also has a partnership with PFL, which could open the possibility of other exciting matchups should he pursue them.
Insider Shares Honest Take on Michael ‘Venom’ Page’s UFC Exit