Alberto El Patron On Jack Swagger Signing With Bellator, If He Plans To Fight In MMA
WrestlingInc.com owner Raj Giri was recently on a media conference call with Impact Wrestling superstar Alberto El Patron. Giri asked El Patron about his thoughts on Jack Swagger's recent signing with Bellator MMA.
As previously reported, Jake Hager, better known as former WWE World Heavyweight Champion Jack Swagger, has signed with Bellator MMA. El Patron has a background in MMA himself with nine wins in 14 career fights. He said even though the transition from wrestling to MMA will not be easy, he thinks he'll achieve some success.
"I think it's a fantastic idea. Jack Swagger is a tough guy, he's a legit wrestler, he's a big, strong guy and I think he has all the tools to go into a fight and win and do something good with Bellator and in the sport of MMA," El Patron said. "It's gonna be tough, the tranistion is gonna be difficult because he's been doing pro-wrestling for so long. He's gonna have to focus on going back to the amateur wrestling gym and training all the other techniques that he doesn't know like jiu-jitsu, striking and all that stuff. But I think he's gonna do well."
El Patron is currently the president of MMA promotion Combate Americas. He was asked if he thinks he'll ever return to MMA for one last fight. He said he's open to it and revealed he previously turned down an offer from Bellator.
"Yes, of course. I was actually talking about this with my family last night when were were at an event to promote Combate Americas here in San Antonio this Friday," he said. "The first time I was out of WWE, I had the company Bellator reaching out to me to offer me something. The offer didn't make sense for me and I didn't really want to do it, but then I met my great friend and boss Campbell McLaren and he came to me with a huge offer, a fantastic offer. And everybody knows that I even went back to the gym to get in fighting shape and everything, but I felt like it wasn't there anymore. My fighting spirit to fight inside the cage wasn't there anymore... He ended up hiring me to do something else for the company. But in the past three months, some people know, I've been training really hard, I'm getting back in amazing shape, I'm in a really good place in my life."
El Patron said the only MMA promotion he'll make a return for would be his own. He said he thinks a fight featuring him would help Combate Americas achieve new heights of success.
"So yes, I've been thinking about maybe doing one more fight. I'm not 100 percent sure, I might change my mind tomorrow or next week," he said. "But right now, last night I was talking to my agent, lawyer, best friend and I was telling him maybe I will do one more fight. But if that happens, it will definitely be with my company Combate Americas. I would love to help my company get that first pay-per-view."