Page Heals Up, Ready For Bowles

By Frank Curreri

Want to ruin a pro fighter’s day? Tell him the fight he’s been busting his butt for has been scratched.

That is exactly what happened to Damacio Page, who was scheduled to fight Japanese sensation Yoshiro Maeda in early June. But, oddly enough, when Page received the news that Maeda had been pulled from the fight so he could fight WEC bantamweight champ Miguel Torres, Page was relieved, not disappointed.

“It didn’t really affect me,” Page said of the missed opportunity with Maeda. “I wanted to fight him bad but I hurt my shoulder. I had a separation and I think I tore some of my shoulder, too. I would have had to back out of the fight anyway.”

The shoulder has improved with rehabilitation, Page said, and he’s spent weeks steeling his mind and body for an August showdown with Brian Bowles. Page realizes that some media outlets have Bowles ranked among the top 5 bantamweights in the world, largely on the strength of the Georgian’s unbeaten record (5-0) and knockout win over Marcos Galvao.

Now Page finds himself in the identical position he was in months ago: Ready to face his toughest challenge yet inside the cage, with a potential title shot awaiting the winner.

“He’s a tough kid,” Page said of Bowles. “He looks like he hits pretty hard. It looks like a good fight for me. “I’ve had him in my mind since my injury. I’ve been pushing for this fight. After I hurt my shoulder, this was who I wanted to fight. He’s ranked fifth and I’m looking forward to taking his spot. I’m hoping I can have Miguel next after Brian.”

In Bowles, Page will encounter a hard-nosed foe that has finished every one of his fights (2 TKO’s, 3 submissions). Bowles is inclined to stand and trade punches, and has overwhelmed opponents in that department. But Page (10-3) is no slouch in the standup game, either. “The Angel of Death” has five (T) KO’s and four submission wins and has never been stopped by punches.

“I can take a punch,” said the 25-year-old from New Mexico. “I’ve been hit by the best. It doesn’t bother me.”

Page lost once by triangle choke to Genki Sudo and by armbar to Britain’s Danny Batten. But Page, a former state champion wrestler, vows not to repeat his mistakes.

“I’ll never get caught in a triangle again,” Page said. “And I’ll never get caught with an armbar again.”

Page also believes people shouldn’t judge him too much based on his most recent performance, a unanimous decision win over Scott Jorgensen during each man’s WEC debut.

“I got called on three days notice,” Page explained, admitting he became a bit winded at the end of the second round and felt like puking. “I’m not a fighter who’s going to sit back and wait for the fight to come to me. This time I’ll be in real fighting shape. Ain’t going to be no slowing down this time. The way I see it, I’m winning. I don’t care how it is, I’m winning. Nobody is going to stop me from that.”