Gegard Mousasi has officially taken his talents to Bellator MMA.

The former Strikeforce champion and elite middleweight striker has decided not to re-sign with the UFC and has inked a new contract with the Los Angeles-based promotion. The news first reported by Chamatkar Sandhu of MMA Junkie then announced by Mousasi himself during an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour.

News of Mousasi's UFC exodus comes at a time when momentum is shifting stronger than it has in more than a decade across the sport's landscape. In the years following The Ultimate Fighter boom where the UFC grew to have no peer in the business, Bellator has used the past two years to gain some serious ground on the industry leader. By going after--and acquiring--recognizable names and top-ranked talent in the prime of their careers has proven to be a bold, yet rewarding strategy for Bellator President Scott Coker and Viacom.

Factor in the current lull the UFC is experience due to lack of viable star power and an entirely new conversation has kicked up.

Bellator has battled the stigma of being second best or lesser since their inception in 2008, but the recent acquisition of quality talent the likes of Rory MacDonald, Benson Henderson and newly minted light heavyweight champion Ryan Bader has served to be a strong move in a new direction. Signing Mousasi will only further the narrative that Bellator is playing for keeps, and picking up a fighter who is currently in the midst of a five victory winning streak is a very strong look for the organization.

Outside of winning a UFC title Mousasi is as decorated as they come in the fight game. He's won championship gold all around the world and competed in numerous weight classes throughout. By bringing Mousasi into the Bellator fold the promotion can build up the middleweight division, in addition to having a standing threat to the light heavyweight crown at all times.

Furthermore, the changing narrative has also been noted on the prospect side of things as Bellator recently inked blue chip talent Logan Storley. The South Dakota native chose Bellator over the UFC due to a host of reasons, but the most poignant being the hinderance the notorious Reebok deal puts on fighter's earning power under the UFC banner.

Coker shared some interesting insight into his strategy during an interview with FloCombat at Bellator NYC last month.


"If you look at the amount of free agents that have come over, they're happy here," Coker said. "They're excited to be here. That's not going to stop. "Let me tell you, we're going to go after every free agent we can get our hands on.

"We're going to do it right. We're not going to infringe on anybody's contract, but if they are truly free, we're going to have a serious conversation. … I think we signed 90 percent of the guys that were free agents that we wanted to sign [last year]. I think our success rate is pretty good."