When asked how much he had to convince Bellator MMA lightweight champion Michael Chandler to sign a new long-term deal with the Viacom-owned fight promotion, Bellator Chairman and CEO Bjorn Rebney put it in terms everyone could understand. “I can tell you that every single time Michael and I go out to dinner for the rest of our lives, he picks up the check,” Rebney told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). That sounds just fine to the unbeaten Chandler (11-0 MMA, 8-0 BFC), who told MMAjunkie.com on Wednesday that he’d agreed to a new multi-fight contract with Bellator – one which Rebney insisted would make Chandler “one of the highest-paid lightweights in all of MMA.” The new deal comes just a week before Chandler is slated to defend the Bellator 155-pound title against Season 8 tournament winner David Rickels (14-1 MMA, 8-1 BFC) at Bellator 97 on July 31. It also comes at a time when Chandler had roughly a year left on his existing Bellator contract, according to Rebney. The new contract will keep him off the free agent market and with Bellator for years to come, both men said in a phone interview.