The former UFC middleweight title challenger and three time King of Pancrase has joined BAMMA (British Association of Mixed Martial Arts) following his controversial release by the UFC due to problems with his use of Testosterone Replacement Therapy.
It had been expected that the consensus top ten middleweight and soon-to-be welterweight would sign with a US promotion such as Bellator or perhaps even look to his former stomping ground of Japan, but in a statement released earlier on BAMMA’s website he said “Offers came in from several fight promotions, but we felt that BAMMA was definitely the best fit”.
BAMMA Head of Business Development celebrated the signing of the high profile former UFC fighter, saying that “As soon as we received word that the Pennsylvania State Athletic Commission lifted Marquardt’s suspension we jumped at the chance to sign him. He is a top ranked contender and an asset to any promotion. Words cannot express how excited we are that Marquardt is now fighting under the BAMMA banner”. Marquardt is also confident. “I’m looking forward to getting back to fighting and there are some guys out there that I would definitely like to get my hands on. I’m talking about the fighters that kicked me while I was down. BAMMA is known for signing top talent, so I may just get my chance”.
With his loudest detractors signed to US promotions, one can only assume he has his eyes set on a showdown with BAMMA Welterweight star Paul Daley or maybe fighters in the group’s middleweight roster such as Frank Trigg, Phil Baroni and champion Tom Watson.
