TORONTO — Michael Bisping went into his UFC 152 matchup with Brian Stann saying that his completeness as a fighter would make the difference between winning and losing. And when it came time to prove it, he did.
With his striking unable to regularly connect, Bisping went to plan B and used his wrestling to wear Stann down and capture a unanimous decision.
All three judges scored it 29-28.
Stann tried to establish his takedown defense early, stuffing a deep shot in the first minute of the first round. While Bisping threatened with it, Stann’s confidence in staying upright fed into his striking. Though much of the first round was fairly even, Stann definitely had the round’s most significant strike, clipping Bisping with a late right hand that sent the Brit stumbling backward a step.
It seemed that Stann could turn the fight’s style to his liking, but Bisping adjusted.
He found his shooting range in the second though, and took Stann down twice. While Stann was able to sweep on one occasion, Bisping’s wrestling success and sharp jab likely earned him round two.
Bisping took Stann down several times in the third, and while the American had his moments when he was able to keep the fight standing, he couldn’t keep it there long enough to sway the judges.
“The gamepaln was to mix it up,” Bisping said afterward. “A lot of punches, then take him down.”
Bisping has now captured five of his last six, moving his overall record to 23-4.
Stann dropped to 12-5 and has now lost two of his last three.