Dana White Confirms UFC Not Re-Signing Michael ‘Venom’ Page After Lackluster UFC Paris Bout

Michael ‘Venom’ Page signed with the UFC in late 2023, and debuted the next year at UFC 299 against Kevin Holland. Initially, fans welcomed his signing and wanted to see what he could achieve in the promotion led by Dana White.

Last weekend at UFC Paris, ‘MVP’ defeated Nursulton Ruziboev in a lackluster three round fight. Page landed just 12 significant strikes in 15 minutes, leaving fans disappointed. The bout was also the last fight on Page’s contract. As such, many have wondered if the promotion will re-sign MVP.

After the Contender Series concluded this week, Dana White addressed the media. They asked him about Page’s contract expiring and what the promotion intends to do next. The UFC CEO was blunt with his answer about the promotion’s decision to not re-sign the former Bellator star.

That was his last fight on the contract… I don’t think we’re signing him. I think it’s been pretty clear that he wasn’t being re-signed and that he would be taken out of the rankings because he’s no longer on the roster.

Dana White via Contender Series post-fight presser

🚨 Dana White confirms that the UFC will NOT be re-signing Michael 'Venom' Page

"I don't think we're signing him. I think it's been pretty clear that he wasn't being re-signed." pic.twitter.com/PNDZVyNhyX

— Championship Rounds (@ChampRDS) September 9, 2026

After defeating Holland in his debut, Page then lost to Ian Machado Garry in a closely contested three-round bout. Soon, he defeated the previously undefeated Shara Magomedov to shock the MMA community.

MVP followed that up with a win over former middleweight title challenger Jared Cannonier. Despite landing knockdowns on Cannonier, Page couldn’t finish the fight. This paved the way for criticism as Page never finished anyone in his UFC run.

MVP fought Sam Patterson at UFC London this year. His performance came under scrutiny as he landed just 27 significant strikes in 15 minutes. After having even less of an output against Ruziboev at UFC Paris, some fans believed that Page would not re-sign with the promotion.

In recent times, Dana White and the UFC brass has cut fighters due to not being exciting despite having a good record in the promotion. MVP became the latest fighter to suffer from that style of decision making. After all, MVP and White has had tensions before.

Reasons for why Dana White didn’t re-sign Michael ‘Venom’ Page listed by veterans

A large majority of the MMA community understands why the promotion didn’t re-sign Michael Page. They even criticized his UFC Paris performance where he refused to outclass his opponent despite having a clear advantage on the feet.

Former UFC middleweight champion Robert Whittaker weighed in MVP’s fighting style and admitted that he found it hard to watch.

I find it so hard to tune in live to MVP winning via points rather than watching it afterwards. I reckon there isn’t a single person who can beat MVP at point sparring. He’s so good at it. It’s almost like he has a live feed of the judges’ scorecards in real time. As soon as it starts to drop, he just does a little bit more and goes up.

Robert Whittaker via MMArcade podcast

The point sparring style of MVP focus on landing a strike and evading strikes from the opponent. Page doesn’t push the volume and showboats constantly. Ex-UFC star Zac Pauga thinks that such fighting style couldn’t connect with the younger audiences, leaving him out of top matchups.

I like MVPs style and respect his game. The only actual issue is that he doesn’t have crazy fan support. I can’t really speculate why but he doesn’t have then following that Paddy does, Arman had some finishes but his fights weren’t barn burners. He just didn’t reach the casual fan in a way these young guys do and the UFC wasn’t going to do him any favors with matchups.

Zac Pauga via X

I like MVPs style and respect his game. The only actual issue is that he doesn’t have crazy fan support.

I can’t really speculate why but he doesn’t have then following that Paddy does, Arman had some finishes but his fights weren’t barn burners.

He just didn’t reach the… pic.twitter.com/wfSuX4D57v

— Zac Pauga (@ZacPauga) September 7, 2026

The UFC and Dana White wants entertaining fighters that can expand the reach of the sport. Page is 39 years of age, and UFC always look for young and exciting contenders. Moreover, MVP’s point sparring style and not being popular with the casual fans made him expendable.

Also Read:

• Ian Garry Predicts Future 170-Pound Matchups Involving Islam Makhachev, Carlos Prates and Michael Morales
• Dana White Reacts to -6000 Favorite Bella Mir Losing at Contender Series