Looks like Nike is trying to dip its foot deeper into the MMA pool. Following in the steps of Anderson Silva and Jon Jones, all signs point toward Heavyweight champ Junior Dos Santos being the next to ink a sponsorship deal with the athletic apparel company.
As of yet, neither side has signed any papers and terms aren’t known. Negotiations appear to be going well, however, as Dos Santos appeared on UFC Tonight on Fuel TV in a shirt with a large Nike logo.
Silva was the first to sign a sponsorship agreement with Nike. However, Jones one-upped him by being the first mixed martial artist to get a global deal while Silva is limited to the Brazilian market. It seems most likely that Dos Santos would follow in Anderson’s footsteps.
JDS first defended his title in May at UFC 146 where he knocked out two-time former champion Frank Mir. Next, he’ll face who many think we’ll be his greatest challenge thus far in a rematch against Cain Velasquez. In their first match, Dos Santos disposed of Cain quickly with a 64 second KO. At UFC 155, Velaquez will get a chance to show that it was nothing more than a lucky punch (it wasn’t).