Former UFC heavyweight contender Roy Nelson has been one of the most popular fighters in the division for many years now. Nelson has fought all over the world putting on some of the most exciting fights in the division and is very happy to be with Bellator MMA now.
“It’s been exciting,” said Nelson about fight week being around a completely different cast of characters. “It’s when you wake up for a new job, even though it’s the same old job, but it’s a new job and you want to put your best foot forward.”
There are some key difference that Nelson has noticed so far about the differences between the UFC and Bellator, one of which is how professional and polite his new bosses have been. He spoke to MMAfighting.com prior to his fight this Saturday night about the differences he sees.
“The biggest difference is being excited to go to work, I can’t wait for Saturday.”
“There’s a big difference in my enthusiasm,” he said. “`Please’ and `thank you’ go a long way. Anytime someone says `please’ and `thank you,’ it means so much more than `just do this.’
“What brought me to Bellator was Scott Coker, Viacom and one of my good friends, Mike Kogan,” Nelson said. “I’ve known Mike for I’d say 10 years. And then there’s the new regime at the UFC. There’s a lot of things.”
And it wasn’t a difficult decision for Nelson to make either. He was simply happy to be appreciated by the Bellator promotion, so respect definitely goes a long way with him.
“Actually, it was a super easy decision,” he said. “It was a no brainer. It had nothing to do with the offer. It had everything to do with `please’ and `thank you.’ That is appreciation. One of the things in marriage is you have to understand what appreciation is about, and that’ll keep me for longevity. That’s why my fans love me, because I appreciate them. Because with no fans, there would be no sport, no fighting for me, no UFC, no Bellator, no Rizin, there’d be nothing without the fans.”
Nelson faces Javy Ayala on Saturday night September 23rd in San Jose, California in his Bellator debut.
