Michael Bisping is on a one-man crusade, calling out any fighter in the UFC’s middleweight division who can get him closer to the belt.
First, he called out champion Anderson Silva himself, following the Brazilian’s 10th title defence against Chael Sonnen at UFC 148 last Saturday.
In an interview shortly after the fight, Bisping said:
“I’m not that level of wrestler. I can wrestle a little bit, but I’m not Chael Sonnen,” Bisping admitted. “But, I can kickbox [much] better than Chael Sonnen can. I won’t get knocked out in the second round like Chael Sonnen did. That’s a fact.”
The English fighter added, “You’re a fool to bet against Anderson. He’s amazing. For me, personally, I want to fight the guy because I want to see how I can do against him. I’ve beat a lot of guys, but I want to fight that guy. I think I can do better. And I’m never going to know that until I get in there with him.”
However, Bisping, coming off a loss to Sonnen, is not the obvious contender, and “The Count” assumes he’ll need to take out one more big-name scalp before being given the shot.
Bisping has also called out Alan Belcher, a fighter on a four-fight win streak coming off an impressive display against Rousimar Palhares.
“Alan Belcher’s somebody that’s been calling me out for seems like forever now. To be quite frank I’m sick of it. So, Alan Belcher if your balls are big enough call Joe Silva and let’s do it.”
Sticking to the “balls” theme, Bisping next turned his attention to Brian Stann.
“Brian Stann, it looks like your balls have grown a little bit. Listen mate, respect you’re a great fighter, you really are, you’re a fantastic individual, I have nothing but respect but if you step into that Octagon with me you’re going to get your arse kicked so just know that.”
Stann has gone 4-1 in the UFC since dropping to middleweight and would be a good stylistic matchup for Bisping. Neither fighter is known for their wrestling, but both have a powerful kickboxing base.
In his last fight, Stann KO’d Alessio Sakara inside the first round, setting his career back on an upwards trajectory in the UFC.
Since Sonnen’s second defeat, no clear front-runner has emerged to challenge Silva. Bisping’s name has been mentioned, but so has Mark Munoz’s.
Munoz was expected to seal his title shot with a win over Chris Weidman earlier this week, however, the Filipino wrecking machine was taken out in the second round. Weidman has put himself on the verge of a title shot, having amassed an impressive nine-fight unbeaten run in his professional career.
In response Bisping has been quick to call out Weidman too, tweeting last night:
“Weidman looked great last night. But no1 contender? If that’s the case I want to fight him and prove I’m the number 1 contender. Let’s do it.”
The UFC has not announced any plans for who will fight Silva next, and even light heavyweight contender Rashad Evans has thrown his hat in the ring.
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