Michael ‘Venom’ Page Disappearing Act At 170 Is Still A Mystery

After a standout 2025 campaign, Michael Page has a pretty good sense of when he’ll be back in action. The problem is everything else. Page doesn’t know who he’ll be fighting and he doesn’t even know what weight class the bout will take place in.

Page (24-3 MMA, 3-1 UFC) will officially hit two years on the UFC roster in March, having arrived  one year after his final bout with Bellator MMA, where he went 17-2 over a decade and built his reputation as one of the sport’s most unique strikers.

Since joining the UFC, “MVP” has delivered more highs than lows. He scored a statement win over Kevin Holland in his promotional debut, suffered a competitive loss to Ian Machado Garry, then rebounded in 2025 with victories over Shara Magomedov and former middleweight title challenger Jared Cannonier.

After beating Cannonier, Page made it clear he wanted to return to welterweight the division he entered the UFC in. The issue, according to Page, is that opponents at 170 pounds keep mysteriously disappearing.

“I’m in Two Divisions”

Speaking recently on the Shxts ’n’ Gigs podcast in the U.K., Page laid out his growing frustration with the matchmaking process.

“I’m in two divisions. I said I want to be at welterweight,” Page said. “I’ve taken a spur-of-the-moment middleweight fight with Shara ‘Bullet’ I didn’t mind. Then I was like, ‘OK, give me a welterweight fight.’ Nobody’s available.

“‘OK, give me another middleweight fight.’ They gave me another middleweight fight. Cool. ‘Give me a welterweight fight.’ Nobody’s available. How can nobody be available?”

Page said he even tried to proactively pitch opponents, only to be told those fighters already had plans despite Page himself being left idle for months.

“There was a fight the other day. A welterweight just won spectacularly,” Page said. “I messaged the matchmakers: ‘That’s a great fight for me in London.’ They said, ‘Oh, we’ve got plans for him.’ The guy just stepped out of the cage. I’ve been ready for months, and you don’t have plans for me?”