Michael “Venom” Page (25-3) enters the final fight of his current UFC contract this Saturday when he faces Nursulton Ruziboev at UFC Paris.
Page has compiled a 4-1 record since joining the promotion but has expressed frustration with his recent performances and difficulty securing fights against higher-ranked opposition.
“My output needs to be a bit more. I know I’m still capable of doing it because I still do it in the gym, so I’m still capable of getting those results. So, yeah, I want this last fight here is me reintroducing myself to the UFC and to the world. To say, ‘Alright, yeah. He’s still that guy.’ I need to remind you guys who I am, why you wanted me in the first place, and what I can do. It’s just giving me the extra excitement to go and do something. Some people will call it pressure, but I like that. It’s like, okay. You give me a task to go and do, and I’m gonna go do it,” Page said.
Page, ranked No. 8 at middleweight, has struggled to secure fights against top-five opposition and will instead face No. 15-ranked Ruziboev.
The former Bellator star has also spoken about the UFC’s restrictions on fighter entrances, saying the promotion’s rules have limited some of the elaborate walkouts that became a trademark of his career.
“This one is quite straightforward, but it will still be high energy. Again, it’s UFC. They need to allow me to do my thing, which they don’t. I guess it’s for everybody. They just have their way of doing things. These guys are a lot more difficult, man. Security is tight here. It’s definitely a lot more difficult, trying to do it in the UFC. My entrance in the UFC doing the Undertaker, that was a headache just to have a cape over my head. It came out well. And the thing is, that wasn’t even what I wanted to do. If I was allowed to do what I wanted to do, people would be like, ‘What the hell was that? That was unbelievable.’ But anyway, you move on. It was still good. But again, any time they’re so very strict about what you can and can’t do, I feel like you’re missing out on personalities,” Page said.
Page has said he wants to remain with the UFC after Saturday’s fight but is looking for a clearer path toward higher-ranked opponents and the middleweight title.