Bellator MMA veteran Michael “Venom” Page is joining the ranks of UFC Lightweight Champion Conor McGregor in the pro boxing world, as the fighter has signed a contract with Hayemaker Ringstar.
Hayemaker Ringstar is a promotional stable run by professional boxer David Haye and Richard Schaefer, other recent signings include Joe Joyce and Qais Ashfaq.
Scott Coker, the President of Bellator MMA, recently stated in an interview with The MMA Hour that the promotion was allowing MVP to dip his toes in the boxing world.
“We have a deal with the local promoter over there,” Coker said. “We asked [Page], ‘do you want to kickbox or do you want to box?’ He prefers boxing. He wants to get a couple fights in, probably to get ready for Paul. Paul’s got some good hands. So we said, ‘go ahead and go do that,’ just like we did a deal with (boxing promoter) Lou DiBella (to promote some of his boxers in MMA), right? So it’s exactly the opposite. It’s like we’re kind of lending out MVP to go box, and then I told him, I said, ‘MVP, if you want to come kickbox or fight MMA before the end of the year after your boxing, you’re more than welcome to. Or if you want to take a couple boxing fights, go ahead and just get ready for this fight at the beginning of next year.”
There is no word on when MVP is going to be making his professional boxing debut or how it is going to affect future fights in Bellator MMA.
MVP has already competed eight times under the Bellator MMA banner, with notable wins coming over UFC veteran Nah-Shon Burrell, Strikeforce veteran Rudy Bears, Strikeforce veteran Evangelista Santos and Fernando Gonzalez.
The British slugger is also slated to fight fellow British star Paul Daley in 2018, the two had a brief altercation in the crowd at Bellator 179.
