Michael Page is known for his showmanship, but ahead of his Bellator 158 fight, he borrowed from some other familiar showmen.
Page was slated to take on Fernando Gonzalez at Bellator's London show, and once prior at Bellator 151. When Page was forced to withdraw from the fight at Bellator 151, Gonzalez accused Page of trying to keep his record undefeated. When Gonzalez pulled out of their planned Bellator 158 bout, Page didn't hesitate to bite back.
Page posted a video inspired by WWE legend "Stone Cold" Steve Austin. The WWE star popularized the "What?" catchphrase that proved to be rather handy for Page. After taking from "The Texas Rattlesnake," the perhaps coincidentally nicknamed "Venom" opened up to Fightful.com about his affection for pro wrestling.
"I'm not the type of person to go on social media, to text or type back, I'm going to have some fun with it," Page explained. "I was raised watching those guys, and to be entertaining, so why not put that kind of spin on it? The Rock, Goldberg, The Rock, Undertaker, Kane, Eddie Guerrero, I watched those guys in and out. I took a little from it, and I'm sure I'll be doing some more because everyone keeps asking me for it."
"MVP" has drawn comparisons to pro wrestlers for his antics inside the cage. While Page says he's been a fan for a long time, not all of the elements of his persona came from pro wrestling.
"I've been watching it for years. At the same time, it never really had that much of an effect on me as a character, this was my character from a young age. It's just a part of me. I was always a showman," Page said.
Page is also well aware of the physical toll taken on pro wrestlers. When prodded about possibly taking his talents to pro wrestling, "Venom" immediately cited the pain involved.
"The stories I've heard from the back office shall I say is that these guys are always in pain. I wouldn't mind being featured, but I don't think I'd get into it (full time)," Page told us.
Gonzalez was replaced by Evangelista "Cyborg" Santos, and will take on Page on July 16 at Bellator 158 on Spike TV. We'll have more from Michael Page tomorrow here on Fightful.com.
By Sean Ross Sapp
