UFC
Dana White discusses how MC Hammer made a case to bring Nate Marquardt back to Zuffa
Feb 23, 2012 - 1:00:04 PM Dana White discusses how MC Hammer made a case to bring Nate Marquardt back to Zuffa

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By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

Nate Marquardt's signing with Strikeforce this week came as a slight surprise, as he's being brought back into the Zuffa fold less than a year after UFC President Dana White kicked him out of the UFC.

The signing came after a stint with BAMMA where Marquardt didn't even get a fight, and this week White talked about giving Marquardt another chance, and the influence musician and Alchemist MMA head MC Hammer had on Marquardt's return.

"Right after it happened, right after he was released from the UFC, MC Hammer is involved in his team," White explained in an interview with Ariel Helwani at MMAFighting.com. "He asked if we could meet; I met him in Los Angeles and he presented the case for Nate, and I said, 'Listen, I love you, but he's gonna have to go somewhere else, fight in other places and come back.' He opted to sit out and not fight anywhere else. He wants to fight in the UFC. So we're going to give him a shot in Strikeforce [and see what happens]."

Ultimately, it will be up to Marquardt to make the best of his time in Strikeforce, but the door to a potential UFC return has at the least been opened.

Penick's Analysis: Marquardt is one of the best fighters in the middleweight division, and he's likely going to be a top opponent at 170 lbs. as well. He's a valuable piece of the roster, but his exile from the UFC was for business reasons. They made an example out of him because he cost them money by being removed from a main event the day before the card. Time has healed some of the wounds, and Marquardt will have a chance to re-prove himself on the Strikeforce stage, with the hope of returning to the UFC down the line.