UFC star Michael Page, aka ‘MVP’, has given his thoughts on the current state of the promotion’s welterweight division.
In his last outing, Michael Page – best known as MVP – made his way up to middleweight in order to face Shara Magomedov. In a result that took many by surprise, MVP was able to get the better of ‘Bullet’ and secure the win. He initially expected his appearance at 185 pounds to be a one-time deal but now, he’s preparing for a blockbuster encounter against Jared Cannonier at UFC 319.
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If he’s able to pick up the win, there’s a real chance that Page could vault himself into championship contention. It certainly feels like the most realistic route to a title shot right now given how congested things are at welterweight, which was actually one of MVP’s big problems when making this switch.
In a recent interview, Page spoke candidly about the welterweight division and why he doesn’t like the politics of it all.
Page’s view on welterweight division
“It is what it is. It’s kind of worked out how it’s worked out,” Page told MMA Junkie. “I would have preferred to get a fight in the welterweight division. As I’ve said before, it feels like there’s a lot more politics going on in the welterweight division, and everyone’s a bit more tentative about who they fight. I’m just not at that stage of my career to care enough.
“I’m just like, ‘Give me a good fight, and I’m in.’ I expected after that last win I was going to get another good fight, and I was getting names that didn’t really make any sense. So, middleweight it is. I’m happy to get such a high-level fighter, probably the highest-ranked fighter that I’ve had so far. So I’m excited. I’m happy with the fights that I’ve had.”
“Now having confirmed that Islam (Makhachev) is coming up to welterweight to fight Jack Della (Maddalena), again, it feels like welterweight is just going to be a bit of a holdup,” Page said. “Middleweight right now definitely seems way more exciting. Obviously I got Jared to focus on at the moment, but I may be staying here for a while until things start moving again at welterweight.”
Quotes via MMA Junkie
