In a ten minute clip from an interview with ESPN, UFC middleweight Michael Bisping chatted about Chael Sonnen, Jason “Mayhem” Miller, Jorge Rivera and season 14 of “The Ultimate Fighter.”
Bisping is no stranger to the TUF series, winning season 3 as a light heavyweight, and coached on season 9 on the show opposite Dan Henderson in season touted as “The United States vs. The United Kingdom.”
As far as what Bisping learned from his experience with the show, he explained “you’ve got to be careful…because they’re going to edit it a certain way, and try their best to make you look like an asshole.”
“The Count” said he plans to avoid that since “they can’t edit you as an asshole, if you don’t act like an asshole” but also admitted “that’s easier said than done.”
Speaking on arguably the UFC’s biggest villain, Chael Sonnen, Bisping explained that “I have no type of friendship wit the guy” but that he just feels that “he’s (Sonnen) paid his dues.”
Bisping was also adamant in the fact that “I’ve never taken a steroid in my life” and that “I’m a massive anti-steroid guy.”
Jason “Mayhem” Miller, Sonnen’s replacement for head coach opposite Bisping on TUF 14, Bisping feels that “he’ll be good for the show, but he wasn’t really the opponent I wanted.”
The Count pulled no punches when he stated that “I would have liked to fight a guy like Chael Sonnen, or perhaps the winner of the (Yushin) Okami-(Anderson) Silva fight.”
Bisping also indicated that while he is a fan of the “massive exposure” that comes from doing TUF, he also “likes to stay active, and fight regularly” and isn’t a big fan of “sitting on the sidelines for 10 months.”
In regards to Miller as opponent, Bisping said that Miller has “great cardio, is tough as hell, great jiu jitsu, an underrated stand up, and good wrestling.”
“I’m not saying he’s a lesser fighter than me, but in terms or world rankings and getting a title shot, I don’t think a win over him helps me.”
Additonally, “the pressure is on me, because I’m going out there with everyone expecting me to win.”
Inevitably, the “spitting incident” between Bisping and Jorge Rivera became a topic of conversation as well.
Bisping obviously became heated over the topic: “Well, it wasn’t a spitting incident, ya know, I spat on the floor ‘cuz the guy was talking shit about my family.”
The British fighter also rationalized that “if I talked shit about your family, I’d expect you to spit on the floor and show contempt for me as well.”
Furthermore, Bisping added “the guy (Jorge Rivera) is an absolute piece of shit, and that’s what I think, and that’s what I showed him.”
For the fans calling for Bisping to get suspended or even cut from the UFC, Bisping went off saying that “those guys need to get a fucking grip on themselves,” and reminded that he issued an apology to the UFC, Rivera, and Rivera’s camp for spitting in Rivera’s corner.
“I am yet to hear an apology from him for insinuating that my girlfriend has Chlamydia, and all the other shit he’s talked,” Bisping angrily recalled.
When it was brought up that Mayhem would try and push Bisping’s buttons the way Rivera did, Bisping quickly drew a distinction between the two fighters.
“All the pre-fight build up (from Rivera)…I’ve never seen anything like that in my life. You can push my buttons all you want, and say whatever you want about me, and that’s fine…fighters do that.”
“I wanted to fight Chael Sonnen; you don’t think he would’ve pushed my buttons a little bit? But I don’t think for one second that he would’ve said or done what that last guy did. Go and watch the videos again.”
How does Michael Bisping’s TUF team look, as far as he’s concerned? “My initial thoughts on the team is that they’re amazing, absolutely amazing.”
“I’m so impressed with these guys, we only had one workout session…but the work ethic, the determination….the fights are gonna be crazy.”
Bisping also mentioned that he has met Miller a few times, “just hanging out, having fun” and that he has “no beef with the guy.”
However, he also clarified that “it’s still early days, and he’s a big personality, and I talk a little bit too much myself,” indicating that he does not foresee a boring season on the horizon.
In what is just a quick fun fact, Bisping is moving to Orange County, California, and has considered opening a gym over there.
When pressed if MMA fans in general are anti-British, Bisping responded by saying that “I think it’s just in human nature if you’ve got two guys fighting, and you don’t really know them, you’re going to root for the guy who comes from your country.”
Bisping also indicated that “I’ve never had a negative experience (in America), outside of being booed.”
A bit surprisingly, Bisping has seemingly put his feud with Strikeforce middleweight Tim Kennedy on hold, as he did not address the military once during the interview.
For those wondering when the sparks will fly between Mayhem Miller and Michael Bisping, keep in mind that Miller has already said that “Michael Bisping has replaced Bin Laden as the most hated man in America.”
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