Bellator fighters discuss free agency trend in MMA

TURIN, Italy – Bellator has benefitted greatly from the rise in fighters exercising their free agency rights following terms in the UFC.

With the signings of highly ranked Phil Davis (15-3 MMA, 2-0 BMMA), No. 4 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA light heavyweight rankings, and Benson Henderson (23-5 MMA, 0-0 BMMA), honorable mention in the pound-for-pound rankings and force in both the lightweight and welterweight divisions, Bellator upgraded their roster significantly.

MMAjunkie caught up with several of the fighters on this past weekend’s Bellator 152 card, which took place at Pala Alpitour in Turin, Italy with a Spike-televised main card, to discuss the subject of free agency.

Among those commenting was co-main event winner Alessio Sakara (18-11 MMA, 1-0 BMMA), who scored a second-round knockout of Brian Rogers. Sakara fought 15 times in the UFC’s octagon before his release following four consecutive losses. While his trip to the free agent market was the result of a failure to pick up victories rather than a willing choice to test his value, he said he sees the upside of options for fighters.

“It’s very good because it’s possible to give a lot of opportunities to fighters,” Sakara said.

Check out the full video above.

And for more on Bellator 152, check out the MMA Events section of the site.