According to an Oct. 3 post from MMA Junkie, Matt Riddle is coming out of retirement to fight at Bellator 109.
"It's water under the bridge, and we're ready to move forward to greener pastures," Riddle told MMAjunkie.com on Thursday of his relationship with Bellator. "They just want me to fight forward and do work for them, and they're willing to help me in any way that they can. And you can't ask for much more from a company. At the end of the day, they treated me right and I'm happy."
Riddle will make his Bellator debut on Nov. 22 at Bellator 109, in his home state of Pennsylvania.
"Honestly, I was pissed," Riddle explained of his reasoning for retiring in the first place. "So I was like, 'If I can't fight, I'm going to retire.' I basically threw a hissy fit and retired. (But Bellator) called me up and said, 'Bro, we didn't realize your situation.' They gave me an advance, they gave me money and the fight in the November, and they've already got me scheduled for the tournament in January or February.
"So they're doing everything in their power to help me out. Unfortunately, I kind of hopped off the handle right off the bat. I had a cracked rib, I hadn't fought in six months, and I'm broke. But they took care of me and hooked me up and I couldn't be happier."
Riddle admits he never really wanted to retire because at his age, he's still considered to be in his fighting prime. Riddle is just 27 years old.
"I know how to do stuff, so I was doing handyman stuff and making money that way," Riddle said. "But I'd rather make money in the cage. I really didn't want to retire. I'm in my prime – I'm 27."
Bellator doesn't have an opponent yet for Riddle for the Nov. 22 show, but Riddle said he's signed the bout agreement to be on the card.
The fight takes place at Sands Casino Event Center in Bethlehem in Riddle's home state of Pennsylvania.
