Bellator 267; SSE Arena, London:
A very highly awaited rematch went down in the UK in front of a bunch of sports celebrities and thousands of screaming fans. And while they’re all ecstatic with the results, it has people asking an important question. MVP’s win means what?
The fight between three-time welterweight champion Douglas Lima, and Michael Page went as many pictured it. To a point. “MVP” shucked and jived as he usually does, along with his patented showboating. Again choosing to fight to his strengths, at distance. As he picked apart Lima.
For his part, “The Phenom” was slow to attack the hometown fighters long legs. It also took him awhile to time Page’s movements. But he did manage to get takedowns in the opening and closing rounds. And cracked Page there with ground and pound. And the rematch came close to ending the way the first one did, with a Lima finish. In the middle round, Lima landed the low kick, but missed the dangerous right uppercut.
Round 2️⃣ is heating up!
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) October 1, 2021
Watch @PhenomLima vs. @MichaelPage247 LIVE NOW on @SHOSports!#Bellator267 pic.twitter.com/L7DoahtyiZ
Outside of that and this one on the feet:
.@PhenomLima catches @MichaelPage247!#Bellator267 | @SHOsports ?? | @BBCiPlayer ?? pic.twitter.com/1UiYrzM1FU
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) October 1, 2021
It was all Page there. As he dropped the Brazilian three times, despite Lima bouncing right back up. But then it came time for the cards to be read. And all three were 29-28. Two of which went to Page making those outside of Page’s fans scratch their heads.
MVP’s Win Means What?
There isn’t anyone that can argue these two need to fight one more time. Fight one was a decisive finish, this one is questionable. A trilogy can truly decide it. But if Bellator decides that this fight and his now six-fight win streak is worthy of a title shot, Page has his hands full with Yaroslav Amosov. The fighter with the best overall record in MMA is 26-0, and is as under the radar as they come.
Amosov is deadly on the ground, and has the standup to go along with it. Page would need every centimeter of his height and reach advantage to be working on all cylinders. Otherwise that “0” stays with the champion.
Scott Coker would be in a tough spot to have Page fight anyone other than these two. Perhaps Lima’s manager after seeing the hometown fighter get a clear favorable scoring had the perfect idea. Finish this in Lima’s backyard.
Rematch in Atlanta @BellatorMMA @PhenomLima
— Brian Butler-Au (@BrianButler_Au) October 1, 2021
MVP’s Win Means What?; Can “Venom” Beat The Champion?
The simple answer is absolutely. Especially since Amosov has never fought someone that has the Matrix built inside him. And if fans don’t like the distance and point fighting from Page, that’s the only way he can upend Amosov. The champion has a rock for a chin. Should Page come in, and the fight go to the ground, Amosov will grind him into the abyss. Now does he truly deserve that fight off this performance might just be a different answer. While he is a popular name in the company, we still don’t know if he’s ready to carry the mantle. For Lima, it’s a whole different story.
Now riding his first ever three-fight losing streak (all decisions), he’ll need to do a lot to become a four-time champion. Most likely needing two-wins to get there, at least. And the fact that Jason Jackson, and Neiman Gracie are charging hard to the top of the division, means the slide might not be done yet.
