Two weeks ago, the crowd at UFC 299 in Miami erupted as the Caseya Center went dark and the bell rang.
As chants of “MVP, MVP, MVP” could be heard, Michael “Venom” Page emerged from behind, wearing a black cape and smoking. For those of you who know WWE, the signature music that played in the background as he entered the arena, his now iconic entrance in his UFC debut against Kevin Holland, clearly shows that he is -It showed that he had respect for Undertaker.
The page is all about entertainment. Whether it’s the nerves of watching his own entrance, dancing on his way to the ring, or his favorite part of putting on a show for the Octagon crowd, it’s no wonder where his name is on the fight card. He knows his fans will remember him even if it’s on the page. .
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England’s Michael “Venom” Page prepares to face Kevin Holland in a welterweight bout during the UFC 299 event on March 9th at Caseya Center in Miami. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
The 36-year-old has literally fought long and hard to get into the UFC Octagon, and is now 1-0 after defeating Holland by unanimous decision. But as mentioned during the UFC 299 broadcast, Page’s name is known throughout the martial arts world.
FOX News Digital caught up with Page while he was in New York to talk about the entertainment side of it, and it was clear that he’s a big fan of WWE when the introduction of The Undertaker came up.
But it wasn’t just wrestlers like The Undertaker that helped Page develop his brand in the sport.
Page, who is 22-2 in his mixed martial arts career, said of Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, “The Rock, to me, is one of the best in terms of crowd involvement and what he does,” on FOX. He told News Digital. “I’ve never seen anyone else that can do that. WWE as a platform is something that generally does that regularly. It gets the crowd involved and the crowd loves it. Villains, heroes. , and all that kind of stuff.
“So I sat there for hours. And the truth is, I’ve been watching him since I was about 10 or 11 years old. The ‘Attitude Era’ was my era. Stone Cold (Steve Austin) and Goldberg were my favorites, and The Rock and Eddie Guerrero. ”
Rising UFC star Michael “Venom” Page talks about unconventional style that angers some in the fighting community
When Paige decided she wanted to compete professionally in MMA, she knew branding would be key.
“I think in general, that’s always been important to me,” he said. “So when I first said to myself, ‘I want to start MMA,’ [and] I told my family that this is 100% what I’m going to do, and I was like, “So how do I market myself?” Because I’m listening to a certain person speak on the microphone, and I can’t speak, especially after getting excited and getting a rush of adrenaline. I just knocked someone out and I don’t hear anything. I want to be the guy who says the lines clearly, and that’s what the fans will remember. I’m thinking about everything.
“What I say, how I deliver it, my body language, what I do in a place where people can say, ‘Oh, I remember that guy because he did that.'” , I’ve watched 17 games, so why do I stand out?”
So Page, then 24, sat and watched The Rock for hours, writing down how he would address the crowd and his opponents.
England’s Michael “Venom” Page prepares to face Kevin Holland in a welterweight bout during the UFC 299 event on March 9th at Caseya Center in Miami. (Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
“I didn’t think I was going to fight. I was just going through the transition,” he said. “I’m always thinking about the big picture.”
More than a decade later, Page did exactly what he intended at UFC 299, right down to his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, who was shocked to see his composure after defeating Holland. .
Despite his grand entrance and unconventional fighting style, including dancing in the Octagon, Page’s persona is one he’s been crafting for a long time.
And like any artist, he gets “random spots of inspiration,” just like he did before knocking out Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos at Bellator in July 2016.
Paige was with her family — one of nine people, who always get together to brainstorm ideas — and her brother noticed that Santos’ nickname, “Cyborg,” sounded like Pokemon. I thought. At that time, Pokemon GO was a huge boom.
So when a flying knee hits Santos perfectly in the forehead and knocks him out, Page rushes to his team to get his Pokemon hat and Pokeball so he can “catch” Santos.
An interesting ending to an interesting match. While some may see Page’s fighting style and flashy appearances as cocky, he sees it as the result of years of hard work to be able to express himself the way he sees fit.
England’s Michael “Venom” Page poses for a portrait after winning during the UFC 299 event at Caseya Center in Miami on March 9. (Mike Roach/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
That’s why a lot of consideration was given to Undertaker’s entrance, although he admitted he wanted to do something related to magic tricks instead.
“I was talking to my family and I was like, ‘I want to do something a little bit like a magic trick.’ I want to make the entrance really crazy,” Page said. “But I know the UFC is a little tentative about what it does.” [you’re] is allowed to do so. So I thought I’d make it as simple as possible for them and still get a good effect. They still cut out quite a few big parts, but I still managed to land on having something to entertain the fans. ”
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In the Octagon, Page is always going to give it his all. But there is no doubt in his mind, win or lose, no matter his opponent, fans will go home satisfied because of the entertainment he brings.
The UFC can certainly smell what Michael “Venom” Page is cooking.
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