Benson Henderson signed with Bellator MMA on Monday, and explained in a recent interview with ESPN that the Reebok deal with UFC had a lot to do with it. The heavily-critcized Reebok deal restricts fighters’ outside sponsorships from UFC events.
“I won’t lie, it was a very big deal,” Henderson said. “The ability to get sponsors on your own and not have to rely on the amount that Reebok dictates to you was a huge factor. I’d be straight up lying if I said it wasn’t a very big part of my decision to go to Bellator.
“I also want to be a trailblazer for the betterment of fighters. Bellator is open to a fighters union – fighters binding together to see what’s in our best interest. That’s something you can’t even breathe about elsewhere. I think it’s a good thing for myself and other fighters to have that.”
Henderson will fight Andrey Koreshkov for the Bellator MMA welterweight title at Bellator 153. The event takes place on April 22, 2016 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut and will air on Spike TV.
Related: Alexander Gustafsson: UFC & Reebok “Squeezing That Last Money From The Fighters”
