Talk about a desire to stay active.
We know that Michael ‘Venom’ Page will fight fellow British welterweight Paul Daley but, with that bout not expected to take place during this calendar year, MVP has made moves to keep himself busy.
The undefeated 170lber has officially signed with David Haye’s promotion and is eyeing a debut in the ring before 2017 is out.
Haye announced that he’d secured the signing of one of the most entertaining mixed martial artists on the planet via Twitter on Wednesday morning.
New @HayemakerBoxing signing: MMA fans you’ll know about @Michaelpage247 already. Boxing fans you’re in for a treat. pic.twitter.com/rm9qivZ4EI
— David Haye (@davidhaye) July 12, 2017
Page has earned a devoted fanbase due to his flashy striking in the Bellator cage, which stems from his background in sport karate.
Bellator president Scott Coker recently revealed that he’d allowed ‘Venom’ to move into the realm of professional boxing so that he could keep active while he waits for a London showdown with Daley.
“We have a deal with the local promoter over there,” Coker said on The MMA Hour.
“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 Lou DiBella , right?
Haye, who runs Hayemaker Ringstar along with boxing promoter Richard Schaefer, has insisted that the signing is not merely a stopgap for Page.
The former world heavyweight and cruiserweight champion is adamant that the 30-year-old has the ability to make it in the ring.
“He has been sparring some of the top British guys, some legitimate guys,” Haye said of Page, via the Daily Star.
Michael "Venom" Page finished his opponent with a flying knee then captured him with a Pokeball. Savage. #PokemonGo https://t.co/wXcU4Thq9k
— Mike Johnston (@MikeyJ_MMA) July 17, 2016
“He’s an absolute weapon and I’ve never seen anything like it. I would say he is capable of going well beyond the British title.
“I believe, 100 per cent, that he can win a legitimate world title.
“He needs time like anyone but you’ll see in the first few fights what he’s capable of.
“He doesn’t want to hang around for too long – he wants big names now and I’d say within three to four years, he has the capabilities of winning world titles.”
