Stephan Bonnar out of retirement, American Psycho signs with Bellator
Stephan Bonnar out of retirement, American Psycho signs with Bellator
Just a day after Bellator released 13 fighters on their roster they have signed one of the men who literally put mixed martial arts on the mainstream map with his part in the first ever Ultimate Fighter finale back in 2004. Stephan “the American Psycho” Bonnar has signed a multi-fight deal with the organization now headed by Scott Coker.
“Stephan is a guy that has been a huge part of this sport and we are excited have him part of the roster,” Bellator President Scott Coker said in a statement provided by the organization. “He was one half of probably the greatest and one of the most important fights in MMA history, and it happened on Spike. When you look at our hight heavyweight division, with names like Rampage, Tito, King Mo, Emanuel Newton and others, there are a lot of fights Stephan can be involved in. Big fights against big names. After talking to Stephan, I know that’s what he wants, and we want to provide that to our fans.”
Bonnar last fought in 2012 when he was defeated by Anderson Silva. Bonnar then tested positive for banned substances and retired from the sport.
If you want to know who Bonnar has his eyes set on, you don’t need to do much research. Bonnar is calling out former UFC light heavyweight champion Tito Ortiz.
“I want everyone to know I’m coming out of retirement because it’s time to free the MMA world of the virus that’s known as Tito Ortiz,” Bonnar said in a statement provided by Bellator. “We’ve been suffering through his boring fights for too many years, and it’s about time that someone beats it out of him once and for all.”
Here is how the feud started.
“Forrest deserves it (induction into the UFC Hall of Fame),” Ortiz told MMAJunkie.com last year. “He beat me, and he beat some other really good guys. He was a world champion. He had some great fights. I think he deserves it. As far as Stephan, I have nothing against the guy, but you’ve got to be a world champion, I think, to be in the Hall of Fame.”
Bonnar obviously didn’t appreciate those comments and began campaigning for a fight.
“I’m just gonna call it how it is,” Bonanr said. “I’m gonna help him out. We all know he’s broke. We know Jenna took all his money. You know, Punishment Clothing—the only people I see wearing that nowadays are homeless people. His management company, you know—not making any money there. So I’m gonna help the poor guy get paid.”
No official date has been set for this potential grudge match.
