Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
Michael “Venom” Page may be one of the most popular fighters on the Bellator MMA roster, but the high-flying knockout artist still has a loss to avenge entering 2020.
Page, who is scheduled to meet Japanese veteran Shinsho Anzai in a catchweight bout this weekend at Bellator 237, suffered the only loss of his pro MMA career to Douglas Lima via knockout back in May (highlights HERE). The win helped propel Lima to the Bellator Welterweight World Grand Prix tournament finale where he defeated champion Rory MacDonald to claim the undisputed 170-pound title.
While Page has been trying to land a rematch with Lima since their first encounter seven months ago, Lima has publicly stated that “MVP” needs to beat more meaningful opponents before earning a rematch, especially now that “Phenom” holds the Bellator welterweight title. That may be right, considering Page has defeated the likes of Richard Kiely and Giovanni Melillo over the past three months, but “MVP” has no plans of slowing down until he gets his rematch with Lima.
“Douglas Lima was speaking about me and said he’s never fought anybody as fast as me before and is excited and is looking forward to having that rematch,” Page told reporters on Friday (via MMA Junkie). “The second I won, he’s like, ‘Nah, you have to fight some more people.’ He was like, ‘Nah, I’m not even letting you come back that quick,’ so, it’s going to happen either way. There’s going to be a point where he’s not going to be able to stop it, and like I said, if I keep doing what I’m doing now, stay active, stay busy, keep beating people, then 100 percent he can’t stop it.”
Page, 32, has compiled a 12-1 promotional record since making his Bellator debut back in 2013. The English knockout sensation has recorded nine equally devastating finishes during that time and is aiming to produce even better results moving forward, especially for his debut in Japan this weekend.
“My goal is to just – I should be doing so much crazy stuff that these guys can’t stop applauding,” Page said. “Just keep them the most active you’ve ever heard it – so that’s my goal.”
If Page wishes to claw his way back into title contention and get another shot at Lima in 2020 he’ll have to decisively take out Anzai at Bellator 237. While “MVP” possesses a massive advantage on the feet, Anzai, who compiled a 2-2 record in UFC from 2014-2018, is a formidable threat on the ground and has the wrestling skills to control Page in close quarters.
“He’s a tough opponent, man,” Page said. “You can see by his record, you can see by the level that he’s fought at. He’s a wrestler-type as well, kind of stand-and-trade and like you say, in your face the whole night. He won’t fall easily, but I’ve said that about a few people as well, and I’ve changed them just because again, they kind of get a bit like a deer in the headlights when fighting me just because they haven’t seen it before so, they’re kind of like this is a bit – they hesitate or they over-exaggerate and plow forward and end up running into something devastating.”
Bellator 237’s main card will start at 10:00 p.m. ET on Paramount Network. MMAmania.com will deliver results and play-by-play for the televised Bellator MMA card.