In a feature video on his official YouTube channel, former UFC middleweight champion, Michael Bisping has discussed his iconic UFC London main event against sport icon, Anderson Silva back in February 2016 – describing his back-and-forth decision win as his “biggest achievement”.
Michael Bisping, who called time on his professional mixed martial arts career back in 2018, headlined UFC London in February 2016 against Curitiba striking sensation, Silva in a pivotal, eventual title-eliminator at The O2 Arena in front of a raucous hometown crowd.
Battling over the course of five rounds to a gruelling unanimous decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47) win over one of the sport’s most iconic and successful figures, Bisping managed to stay composed beyond the third round after stacking up an early fight lead – outlasting the Brazilian maestro in the most high-profile win over his professional career thus far.
Managing to land a pair of knockdowns against Silva in the bout, Bisping almost saw his lead crumble before him in an instant after Silva connected with a perfectly-timed jumping switch knee before the buzzer in the third frame, dropping Bisping.
Scaling the Octagon fence in celebration, Silva believed he had just turned in one of the most iconic knockout victories in his storied career, however, Bisping had returned to his feet, with referee, Herb Dean still yet to call a halt to the main event clash.
Amid the pandemonium, Silva and Bisping would turn in another pair of brutal frames in the fourth and fifth as the former failed to finish Bisping, resulting in a unanimous decision loss as Bisping seated himself within title contention firmly.
Reflecting on his stunning hometown victory against Silva on his official YouTube channel, Michael Bisping broke down the fight round-by-round – insisting that the win was his “biggest achievement” and “crowning moment” inside the Octagon.
“So, I’m standing there (inside the Octagon) and I’m thinking, please, please, please – and I know a lot of people, I see it all the time, in the comments they say, ‘Bisping, you did not deserve to win that fight, Anderson Silva won that fight’”, Michael Bisping said. “No, he didn’t, I landed more shots, I won more rounds – it was three rounds to two in my humble opinion. Also, fortunately, in the judge’s opinion.”
“I’ll never forget it,” Michael Bisping said. “When they raised my hand there – I had a bottle of water in my hand, the water went down all over my face, it felt so good. For me, that was my crowning moment, my biggest achievement. Every single minute of every day I had spent in the gym, running, hitting pads all the rest of it, all boiled down to that moment. I refused to be beaten that night. And fortunately, it was just enough to get the job done.”
Michael Bisping would go on to successfully land the undisputed UFC middleweight title
Off the back of his monumental victory against Silva, Bisping would replace Chris Weidman on short notice at UFC 199, successfully clinching the undisputed UFC middleweight title with a stunning first round rematch knockout win over Luke Rockhold.
In his single successful title defense, Bisping returned to his native Manchester at UFC 204 in October 2016, avenging another knockout loss against challenger, Dan Henderson over the course of five rounds to secure a unanimous decision title defense.