British MMA star Linton Vassell decided over 11 years ago to take the road less travelled and pick Bellator as his home base.
At the time, fighters on regional scene in the UK tended to stick around in the hopes of landing a beginner UFC contract that may turn lucrative. But with limited purses available at the time, he decided to join up with the American promotion, where he spent the following 11 years.
Now, having just turned 41, he has one last chance at landing a glorious spot in MMA history. And with the heavyweight division across the sport wide open as UFC struggles to crown a definitive champion after Francis Ngannou, he could end his career atop the division, and vindicate a decades-old decision.
Linton Vassell has path to the top of MMA’s heavyweight division in new-look PFL
When Linton Vassell joined Bellator, it would have been a considerably better offer financially than regional British promotions, who may have eventually led him to the UFC. He has since had a number of ups and downs, and now in his 40s has just a handful more fights left to solidify his legacy.
He competes in this year’s heavyweight tournament, and after losing his initial outing will need a quick-fire win against Valentin Moldavsky in order to progress. Should he manage it, he heads to the playoffs, and potentially the $1million championship in November.
Should he win that tournament, he could set himself up to face the winner of the eventual super-fight between Francis Ngannou and last year’s winner Renan Ferreira.
And with the UFC’s heavyweight division in limbo as Jon Jones holds up the undisputed belt and Tom Aspinall is forced to defend his interim belt, there is an open debate as to who lays claim to the title of ‘best heavyweight in the world’.
Indeed, Ngannou never lost his UFC belt, making him the lineal champion. But he has been out of the cage for the best part of three years recovering from injury and boxing in crossover bouts. However, he will defend that lineal title against Ferreira once he is back in the cage, likely towards the year’s end.
In the meantime, Vassell will push to win this year’s tournament, and face the winner of that bout for the title of MMA’s top heavyweight. “Ngannou is the undisputed champion now, really,” Vassell noted in an exclusive chat with Bloody Elbow ahead of tonight’s return.
“He gave the belt up because UFC wouldn’t pay him any more so he said ‘you know what I’m done’. And until Jones and Aspinall fight each other it really is a case where the PFL title is the number one title right now.
“I had a choice back then and Bellator paid more. Now, I’m stubborn and I’m coming to get that belt. For some people it happens right away and for some of us it takes a little bit longer, and at the end of the day I’m doing what I love and I’m chasing my dream.
“I was on low money for a long time and then there was a period in Bellator where I wasn’t getting the fights. I wouldn’t for 10-12 months for about five years, that’s how it was working out and around that time I was thinking ‘have I made the right decision?’
“I thought I may throw in the towel here and try to get to the UFC or I may retire because I’m not making money if I’m not fighting. But then I’d get a number one contender fight, win it, and it wasn’t any more. Or I get the [Ryan Bader] fight and I got sick.
“But I believe in the process, this is my journey and it’s not a straight road. It’s a very bumpy road, but like I said I’m doing what I love.”
Linton Vassell faces Valentin Moldavsky in heated PFL trilogy fight
But before all of that, Vassell must once again face the test of veteran and former interim Bellator champion Valentin Moldavsky. After years of chasing the Russian following their initial meeting in 2019, the Brit got his redemption last year as he knocked out his rival in the first round.
However, their paths have now crossed once again for a final trilogy bout, with Vassell likely needing a repeat result in order to make up the lost points from round one. They meet in the spiritual home of Bellator; the Mohegan Sun Arena in Connecticut which housed the promotion for years.
“Obviously, we want to see who is the better fighter,” he explained. “We’re one apiece, so in my head I’m the better fighter and he probably feels the same about himself. But I want to get that trilogy out of the way.
“I also beat him in a good fashion because we’ve got the tournament to get to the next stage with $1million on the line. So there’s a few things that I’m thinking about this time and a few more things motivating the both of us.
“I’ve got a point to prove, I know he called me out because he thinks my last fight [a third round TKO loss to Denis Goltsov] is how I’m going to fight this one. He probably thinks I got tired or whatever, ‘this is Linton’s last fight, he’s done, he’s old, blah blah blah’.
“I’ve probably had a few people think that, but this is the time where I prove to everybody why Big Swarm is here and here to stay.”