MMA

Michael Bisping Replaces Injured Chris Weidman, Finally Gets a Title Shot After 10 Years

MMA


It’s been a long, long time coming but Michael Bisping will finally have his chance to become UFC middleweight champion. With Chris Weidman officially out of his UFC 199 title fight with Dan Bilzerian-like champion Luke Rockhold, the UFC turned to one of its oldest, steadiest draws at 185 pounds to replace him.




Luke Rockhold is living the life of a UFC champion right now. Photo by Rockhold on Instagram @lukerockhold.

Luke Rockhold is living the life of a UFC champion right now. Photo by Rockhold on Instagram @lukerockhold.

Bisping has been regarded as one of the top fighters in the middleweight division since 2008, following his near-title run at 205-pounds. He has amassed a UFC record of 14-6 and, more importantly, has become one of the UFC’s biggest names due to his propensity for smack talk and his dirty in-cage tactics, though he has more recently become a model of fair play due to his anti-PED stance.

Despite his many years of success, he has never been able to get a shot at a UFC title, despite fighting in a number of contender eliminators. His fights against Dan Henderson at UFC 100, Chael Sonnen at UFC on Fox 2 and Vitor Belfort at UFC on FX 7 all could have led to title shots, but he never quite got over that hump.

Today, however, he finds himself on a three-fight winning streak over CB Dollaway, Thales Leites and former champion Anderson Silva. That, combined with an injury sustained by fellow contender Jacare Souza at UFC 198, leaves him as the top choice by default.

Bisping's razor-thin decision win over Anderson Silva set him up with a title shot. Photo by Sherdog.com.

Bisping’s razor-thin decision win over Anderson Silva set him up with a title shot. Photo by Sherdog.com.

While this is a good business choice by the UFC, hardcore fans know that Bisping is likely going to be crushed by Rockhold. Rockhold and Bisping faced off once before at UFC Fight Night 55 in Australia. Rockhold won the fight in dominant fashion, cracking Bisping with kicks before finishing him with a one-armed guillotine choke.

Even though the fight will most likely end with Bisping getting destroyed by Rockhold, it’s nice that he will finally have his shot at the title. That, however, will likely help Rockhold game some extra credibility as champion.


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