Michael Bisping has been around for a long time. Making his promotional debut in 2006, Bisping is one of the fighters with the current longest tenure with the UFC. Yet despite spending the majority of that time as a top ten ranked fighter in the Middleweight division, Bisping has never fought for a UFC title. Begging the question, what is Michael Bisping’s legacy?
Bisping first became known to UFC audiences after he was crowned the winner of The Ultimate Fighter season 3. Then a Light Heavyweight, Bisping drew the audience’s attention on the show due to his being brash, cocky and his personal rivalry with fellow Team Ortiz member Matt Hamill.
The first big name in Mixed Martial Arts to come out of England, Bisping finally gave British fans someone to cheer for. After a run at Light Heavyweight, that included a (controversial) decision win over Hamill and a (controversial) split decision loss to future champion Rashad Evans, Bisping decided to drop down to the lower weight class of Middleweight.
It was at 185lbs that Bisping’s legacy came into shape.
An aggressive combination fighter, who isn’t picky about opponents, the Brit would work his way up the rankings until it was about time he’d finally get rewarded with that title shot. It’s there, that Bisping’s career starts to take shape.
In his first title eliminator, Bisping faced Dan Henderson at UFC 100, where both were coming into the bout after coaching opposite one and other on TUF season 9. In their fight, Henderson knocked out Bisping in what has become one of the most famous KO’s in UFC history.
In his second title contender bout, Bisping fought and lost to Chael Sonnen, in a decision loss that at the time was largely panned by fans. After the fight, UFC President Dana White stated he felt Bisping had won the bout, two rounds to one.
Then, Bisping faced Vitor Belfort, where he was viciously head kicked unconscious.
All three were title eliminators, where had Bisping won the bout, he’d have gone on to face the champion. All three, he lost. All three, his opponents were on Testosterone-Replacement-Therapy.
TRT, now banned in the sport, is where a doctor could prescribe a fighter synthetic testosterone, where they would be able to enhance their natural production levels of the chemical. More often than not, TRT was abused. The losses to Henderson, Belfort and Sonnen (out of whom the latter two went on to fail PED tests) make Bisping’s lack of a title shot seem even more overdue.
Post-Fight at UFC Fight Night 72, Bisping voiced his frustrations over the losses.
“As a fighter, everyone wants to face the guys that have victories over them,” Bisping said at the post fight press-conference. “Especially guys that have victories for unfair reasons. They’re all taking Testosterone Replacement Therapy. They’re all taking steroids. They use their backsides like a dartboard. They’re cheating, scumbag (expletives). I would love to face them on a fair playing field. Test them before the camp, during the camp and on the night.
“[Belfort and Henderson] used to say, ‘oh, I have to have Testosterone Replacement Therapy otherwise I couldn’t fight.’ Well, now it’s banned and they’re still fighting. They needed it or they didn’t need it. The fact is they didn’t need it and they were cheating.”
All of this, brings us to now. To this Saturday, to be precise.
Had Bisping won against any of those three opponents, he’d have gone on to face then Middleweight champion, Anderson Silva.
This Saturday, February 27, Bisping will finally face ‘The Spider’ in the bout he always wanted. It may not be for a title, but as the Brit has said himself, it will be the culmination of his journey in the sport. You get the sense that for Bisping, a win over Silva will be as good as any belt, would be as crowning a moment as being named champion.
Currently, despite being in the upper echelon of the sport for a decade, Bisping’s legacy is arguably as the best ‘also ran’ in the sport. He’s probably the biggest name to never fight for a belt, and arguably the biggest to never win the belt.
This Saturday, should he beat Anderson Silva, it will not only be the moment he’s had in mind for years, but could well propel him to the title shot he’s always wanted.
All he has to do, is beat the greatest of all time. Who know’s, it may define Bisping’s legacy.
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