NEW YORK – According to Michael Page, it was his idea to expedite a showdown with Paul Daley in the Bellator welterweight grand prix.
“I wanted it, because I don’t believe he would have made it through to the final anyway,” Page told MMAjunkie at a media day for his Bellator 216 headliner.
No matter who’s idea the opening-round matchup was, Page is happy it’s here. And like Daley, he’s ready to move on to the next chapter.
It took two years to book the fight between Daley and Page, which almost didn’t happen when Daley threatened to leave the promotion. Daley accused Bellator of favoring Page and said he would fight out his contract before patching things up.
“This is what I’ve been screaming for for a very long time now,” Page said. “I’ve been asking for this fight for ages. I’ve had contracts sent to me, like, I’m ready to go, and it just wasn’t reciprocated on the other side.”
The two face off Saturday, with the winner getting one step closer to the welterweight title and a $1 million prize. The fight card takes place at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., and streams live on DAZN.
Daley has dismissed Page as an over-hyped creation of social media. He’s also acknowledged a gifted striker with family roots in combat sports and said it’s only business. At this point, Page doesn’t care about the backstory – and the chance to win a title is secondary.
“If the belts didn’t exist, I’d be one of the most popular fighters, purely because of my style,” Daley said. “So the belt doesn’t necessarily do anything for me specifically, other than prove to a few more people that my style is worthy.
“I want a statement victory. But the win means more than anything in terms of this grudge match. If I have to crawl across that finish line, that’s what I’m going to do.”
To hear more from Page, watch the video above.
For more on Bellator 216, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.
