"This is my home" - AJ McKee opens up about his Bellator legacy amid uncertainty regarding promotion's future

AJ McKee [Photo credit: Lucas Noonan/Bellator MMA]
AJ McKee [Photo credit: Lucas Noonan/Bellator MMA]

AJ McKee recently reflected on his tenure with Bellator in light of the uncertainty surrounding the future of the promotion.

There continues to be speculation on what the future will hold for not only Bellator but also the promotion's fighters as they aired their final event on Showtime last night.

During his post-fight press conference following Bellator 301, the former featherweight champion mentioned that he is grateful for the opportunities he has received in Bellator. He noted that despite the situation being bitter-sweet, he understands that the promotion's future is a business decision.

McKee said:

"Everything that I've been built off of, everything that I know has been through Bellator. This is my home. So to see it go away, it's sad but at the same time, it's just all business for me at this point...To see that family oriented scenario go away, I'm a little bummed you know, but like I said, you keep one foot in front of the other and you keep walking." [7:22 - 8:01]

AJ McKee made his MMA debut at Bellator 136 in 2015 and has since become one of the promotion's biggest homegrown stars. So it's fitting if he did, in fact, compete on their final card.

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Who did AJ McKee defeat at Bellator 301?

AJ McKee extended his winning streak to three last night at Bellator 301 as he earned a unanimous decision win over Sidney Outlaw. It was an impressive win as he managed to cause significant damage while fighting the majority of the fight off of his back.

'The Mercenary' moved up to lightweight following his featherweight title loss to Patricio 'Pitbull' Freire last April at Bellator 277. Since then, he has remained unbeaten at 155lbs and earned three consecutive wins over Spike Carlyle, reigning Rizin lightweight champion Roberto 'Satoshi' de Souza, and No. 5 ranked Bellator lightweight Sidney Outlaw.

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