Vitaly Minakov has certainly endured his share of differences with his current employers, but the former Bellator heavyweight champion says the promotion’s new regime has created an entirely new working environment, and he’s not ruling out a return to the company.

“Listen, in the past, I didn’t have the best relationship with Bjorn Rebney, and I was with different management,” Minakov (18-0 MMA, 5-0 BMMA) told MMAjunkie through an interpreter. “Now I have a new management team that represents a lot of famous fighters like Fabricio Werdum, Frankie Edgar, Khabib Nurmagomedov – and now Bellator has a new man in charge with Scott Coker.

“Scott, I believe, is one of the best people in MMA. I was a very big Strikeforce fan and think it was the best show on the planet when he was running it. Scott Coker is a big legend. You can’t compare him with Bjorn Rebney.”

Rebney, of course, is the former CEO of Bellator. Under his watch, Minakov – who’s ranked No.7 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA heavyweight rankings – went 5-0, claiming the promotion’s heavyweight title with a November 2013 win over Alexander Volkov and then defending it once with an April 2014 victory over Cheick Kongo.

However, a series of contract disputes saw Minakov elect to ignore his deal and fight on the regional stage in his native Russia, earning four wins outside of the Bellator cage. Earlier this year, Coker elected to strip Minakov of the belt, but the 31-year-old heavyweight says things have actually improved in the time since.

“My manager, Ali Abdelaziz, has a good relationship with Scott and Spike, and now I’m very comfortable,” Minakov said. “All I need to focus on is training. I have a great team behind me, and whatever decision we’re going to make, we’ll make sure everyone is happy.

“I met with Scott once with my old management. He gave me big respect, but I think things are moving much smoother after my new management met with him a couple of weeks ago. Before, I used to worry about contracts and this and that, and now I’m only worried about training because this is my job as a fighter and I’ll let my management handle the rest.”

Recently, Minakov told Russian outlet investia.ru that he believes his contract with Bellator should expire in the next few months. Bloody Elbow indicated Minakov’s would likely then sign with the UFC.

However, Minakov believes the original interview didn’t necessarily reflect his true feelings and said that while the UFC could ultimately prove his home, he insists there have been no discussions with the promotion up to this point.

“First of all, some of the things I said in the interview got taken out of content and people twisted my words,” Minakov said. “I’ve had no discussion with the UFC. I have a contract with Bellator, but how can they block me from going to the UFC when I’ve never even talked to the UFC? This is 100 percent incorrect.

“To be honest with you, how can anyone say I’m going to move to the UFC when I’m under contract with Bellator? Like I said, whatever decision my manager and Bellator is going to come up with, we will know what’s going to happen. But for now, I am a Bellator fighter. Bellator has guys like Scott Coker, Mike Kogan, Rich Chou and Spike President Kevin Kay, and whatever decision is made, we will make together, and everyone will know what were going to do. But right now, UFC is not even on my mind to be honest with you. If I retire and never fight in the UFC, I don’t really care, as long as I can fight good competition.”

Bellator officials haven’t officially announced any plans for Minakov, though Coker told MMAjunkie he does hope to see the former champ return to action under the Bellator banner.

“While we have no current plans for Minakov, we have a contract with him, and we look forward to seeing him fight again in the Bellator cage,” Coker said.

In the meantime, Minakov said he’s focused on training and looks forward to getting back into a cage, wherever that cage may be.

“I’m grateful for what Bellator has done for me, and without them I would not be here today, and people wouldn’t know who I am.,” Minakov said. “I understand this is business. Bellator is a promotion, and they want to do what’s the best for them – and of course I want what’s best for me. But for the first time in my career, I feel at ease because I know Scott Coker and Spike are very good people, and I know we’ll all make the right decision for everyone to be happy.

“Right now, I just want to fight. I’m training very hard, and I have my team talking to Scott Coker, and like I said, whatever announcement that’s going to happen, Scott Coker will announce it. But for now, nothing has been decided on what’s next for me.”

For more on Bellator’s upcoming schedule, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.