Photo By David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile via Getty Images
Michael Page knocked out another overmatched opponent.
If you watched Michael “Venom” Page’s latest knockout, a quick and dirty decimation of Gianni Melillo in just 107 seconds, chances are you just did it by catching a gif on Twitter or a quick highlight online. Given that it headlined a smaller scale Bellator card in London, England, with its main card starting earlier than usual, that’s no surprise. In fact, if you watched any noteworthy fight on Saturday, even if you’re predominately an MMA fan, it was probably Deontay Wilder retaining his WBC heavyweight title in the squared circle by knocking out Luis Ortiz for a second time.
In the wake of this dynamic and Page’s vastly inferior opposition, criticism of “MVP” and his largely soft opposition has been rekindled. There can be no doubt that Melillo was unsuitable opposition for Page, as the Italian was completely anonymous even by European circuit standards and 1-2 in his three prior fights. This being said, the scorn being heaped upon Page in this particular case is largely unwarranted and no reason to completely despair for his career quite yet.
Firstly, we need to consider that Melillo came in on just over a week’s notice for an injured Derek Anderson, the second time that a bout between Page and Anderson has fallen apart due to injury, the other being a slated bout for Bellator 179 back in May 2017, which dissolved due to a Page neck issue. Given these circumstances, I think the promotion’s choice of opponent is more forgivable, given that few local fighters would be likely to fight Page on such short notice and the other option, Page not fighting at all, would have represented a considerable blow to the card and disappointment to fans. Anderson, even if an underdog, is a formidable fighter who has looked solid in recent outings and would have represented a perfectly adequate opponent for Page.
After Page went airborne and clobbered a 3-1 Richard Kiely in September, the drum was already starting to beat from fans and media critiquing the matchmaking of Page, a narrative that has followed the Brit throughout his Bellator tenure. However, I would say that in that case, the matchmaking was also appropriate: Page had just suffered his first career loss, a nasty knockout at the hands of current Bellator champion Douglas Lima. Given that circumstance, I think a tune-up fight – a promotional tactic as old as time – is fair game. Nonetheless, the Melillo fight coming on the heels of a bounce-back affair like was quick to reinvigorate past criticisms.
I believe a more nuanced, reasonable outlook on Bellator’s handling of Page remains to be seen and should evident in the near future. In the run-up to his fight with Lima, he defeated solid veterans like David Rickels and Paul Daley and it appeared that the training wheels were fully off Page’s career. After a quick confidence builder post-Lima, the initial rebooking against Anderson seemed to suggest that Bellator wasn’t going to regress and coddle Page. Again, we were dealing with a late replacement on a card that, with all due respect to quality prospects like Fabian Edwards, Soren Bok and Terry Brazier that featured on the bill, needed “MVP’s” star power. If next time around, Page is lined up against some total stranger, then maybe start practicing with your pitchfork, but until then we should just wait and see.
There’s no denying that Page is always going to get some measure of preferable treatment from Bellator. His high-flying, knockout-heavy style makes him an easy Scott Coker kinda fighter, on top of his particular importance to Bellator as a British fighter, he’s going to get some extra favoritism.
Over the last three years, Bellator has been keen to expand its footprint in the United Kingdom at a time when the UFC has deemphasized the market — which is a smart idea, however success hasn’t been easy to come by. In January, they announced a television deal with Channel 5, but even if the network is owned by Bellator’s parent company Viacom, the deal is only for one year. And Channel 5, despite being the United Kingdom’s third-largest commercial network, is still best known for CSI reruns and lowbrow, trashy docuseries, despite its recent, committed efforts to change that image. If Bellator is ever going to gain any traction in the British market, they’ll need a strong media presence and stable television partner and in turn, the ability to gain those assets is reliant on having some noteworthy, homegrown standouts like Page.
While Fabian Edwards is a great upstart and kept his unbeaten record in tact on Saturday, his narrow split decision win over Mike Shipman showed he’s far from a finished product and not yet able to offer the MMA public, British or otherwise, what Page does.
Nonetheless, Bellator can’t operate under the fear that they’ll lose their best leverage in the market if Page is booked against a high-level welterweight and loses. In fact, I’d argue it would be far more detrimental to the company and Page himself if he simply highlight reeled a bunch of overmatched scrubs than if he took an honest loss or two against truly elite fighters.
It’s not as though Bellator don’t have those resources either, as welterweight is a deep division for them. If you’re trying to turn Page into a star and potential champion, but live in perpetual worry he can’t compete with a Lorenz Larkin, Andrey Koreshkov, Neiman Gracie or even an aged Jon Fitch, chances are he’s not that guy anyway. If that turns out to be the case, it’s not exactly the end of the world, either. You can always run back a rematch with Paul Daley, who was characteristically outspoken last night after Page’s easy victory. Would it really be the worst thing in the world if you simply found out Page was a highly exciting, albeit not Top 20 fighter, with the proper passport? Hell, Coker has centered a large part of his career on promoting fighters like that.
So let a proper rebuilding take place and do it without trepidation. Rebook the Anderson fight, or put him against an Oliver Enkamp or hell, even a faded Jim Wallhead could fit the bill. Graduate him to your Lorenz Larkins and Andrey Koreshkovs, see what you’re really dealing with. Page may still be growing as a fighter, but he’s still 32 years old and clearly at a juncture in his career where he shouldn’t be toiling with faceless replacement talent and journeymen, outside of extreme, extenuating circumstances like this past Saturday night.
Honestly and realistically, the future of Bellator’s 170-pound elite is more likely to be fighters like Joey Davis, Ed Ruth and Logan Storley, but Page still has currency to the company and the division, even if we’re not sure how much. Regardless of how good he may or may not be, Page nor Bellator deserve the consternation for his last two fights in the slightest. It’s what comes next that will determine whether or not they deserve the venom or not.