Last Friday, former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight champion Lyoto Machida made a surprising switch from the UFC to Bellator MMA.
Machida, who is fresh off an impressive head kick knockout of another veteran in Brazilian Vitor Belfort, stated that the UFC matched the offer he received from Bellator but had already given Bellator President Scott Coker his word that he would join them.
Coker announced that “The Dragon” could fight in both the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions while in Bellator. Machida holds wins over current light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader and middleweight champion Gegard Mousasi during his time fighting in the UFC.