A.J.
McKee is going to remain a Bellator MMA athlete for the
foreseeable future.
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The California-based promotion on Tuesday announced that it has
re-signed the former featherweight champion to an exclusive,
multi-fight contract. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. In a
release, Bellator president Scott Coker also indictated that
McKee’s next move will be to compete in the lightweight grand
prix.
“Our top priority has always been to cultivate talent from the
ground up, and with A.J. I can proudly say we have witnessed this
young man blossom into a bonafide superstar in the Bellator cage,”
said Scott Coker. “It’s also our priority to retain top talent, and
with A.J. entering the prime of his career, it was important to
make sure he continued representing the Bellator brand, much like
he did recently in Japan, for the foreseeable future. I am looking
forward to A.J.’s next challenge, an appearance in our 2023
Bellator lightweight world grand Prix, which showcases the best
155-pounders in the world.”
McKee has established himself as one of Bellator’s top stars since
his debut with the promotion in 2015. “Mercenary” holds promotional
records for most consecutive victories, featherweight submissions
wins (seven) and featherweight stoppages (13). His resume includes
victories over the likes of Patricio
Freire, Darrion
Caldwell, Georgi
Karakhanyan, Pat Curran,
John
Teixeira and Justin
Lawrence.
The 27-year-old Team Bodyshop representatiive is coming off a
unanimous decision triumph against Rizin lightweight king Roberto
Satoshi de Souza on New Year’s Eve — his second victory since
moving to 155 pounds. A date for Bellator’s lightweight grand prix
has not been announced.