Patricio Pitbull doesn’t think that UFC fighters are cut from the same cloth as the ones who were in Bellator.
Last year, Michael Page was left confused by the UFC when he was told there were no welterweight matchups available for him.
His increased frustration with not being booked led to Page accepting a fight with Sam Patterson, which he admitted that he only took because he wanted to get back inside the Octagon.
Another member of the roster, who was also previously one of Bellator’s top stars, has expressed some similar issues that he didn’t expect when he signed to the leading MMA promotion.
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Patricio Pitbull says UFC fighters hide while everyone wanted to fight in Bellator
Michael Page is still confident that he and the UFC can be aligned again after questioning whether the promotion isn’t happy with him or whether opponents simply don’t want to fight him.
Similarly to ‘MVP’, Patricio Pitbull is a fighter that fans wanted to see inside the Octagon for a long time before he eventually debuted in April of last year.
After his third outing under the UFC banner was announced for UFC 327 next month, Pitbull voiced some frustrations about fighters on the roster not wanting to test themselves against him.
“I’ve asked for many names and I’ve heard many names but there’s something different here compared to Bellator,” he told MMA Junkie. “There, everyone was willing to fight, everyone wanted to fight and here, the guys keep hiding themselves behind the rankings. I’m willing to fight anyone from the top to the bottom. Whoever they put in front of me, I’m fighting. But, the guys here don’t think the same way.”
Despite this, the wait for him to get an opponent appears to have paid off for the Brazilian, who has another big matchup on the horizon.
Pitbull will face Aaron Pico in Miami in a clash that would’ve been one of the biggest fights possible while Bellator was still around and had both men on their roster.
His planned return last September was cancelled after the debuting Losene Keita missed weight by three pounds for their bout in Paris.
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Michael Page questioned whether his style is why he wasn’t getting fights
When speaking to Bloody Elbow, Michael ‘Venom’ Page said that he believes his relationship with the UFC has changed over time.
At the same time, he also questioned whether he could be overthinking what the promotion thinks of him, stating that it could just be his unique style that is making it difficult for him to get the kinds of opponents that he wants.
“I could be completely off and it could solely be that people are deciding to just not choose this particular complex fight,” he said. “I feel like people don’t look at me and feel like they’re scared, but it is a complicated fight simply because of the style.
“It’s just a fight that’s a bit unusual. ‘Why would I pick that guy when I can pick an equally difficult person but with a more familiar style that I’ve been trained against for years and years?’”