Dana White: Michael Bisping Will Fight Anybody, Anywhere, Any Time
The UFC middleweight division has been tied up as of late due to champion Michael Bisping.
Although he did defend his belt once against then No. 14-ranked middleweight Dan Henderson (in Hendo’s retirement fight), but hasn’t fought since their October 2016 rematch.
And while speculation ran rampant over his proposed championship bout against former welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre, that fight hasn’t even been scheduled due to injuries.
The rest of the 185 pound division is losing their patience waiting for the champ to defend his belt, but UFC president Dana White assured fighters and fans alike that Bisping is not turning down or refusing fights.
“I’m going to tell you this: There are guys who turn down fights every day here – some I’m very public about, some I’m not, ” White said. “Bisping does not turn down fights. Bisping does not turn down fights. He does not. So I have a lot of respect for Mike. I like guys (like him).
“You’re in the fight business. You should be willing to fight anybody, anywhere, any time – especially if you’re the champion or one of the top (expletive) five guys in the world. You shouldn’t be turning down fights with anybody. Bisping does not.”
Bisping’s extended inactivity has forced the UFC to create an interim middleweight belt, which will be settled between Robert Whittaker and Yoel Romero at UFC 213 in Las Vegas this weekend.
White seems to be shying away from the GSP fight that the UFC had initially proposed. The former welterweight champion says he’s admanant about returning to the octagon after retiring back in 2013, but news recently broke that he would fight the winner of UFC 214s Tyron Woodley vs. Demian Maia title fight. So fight fans should probably forget about that matchup for now, as White insisted that Bisping will fight the interim champ once he is healthy enough to return.
“(Bisping) is in line for the winner,” White said. “Bisping’s never turned down a fight, this guy. Me and Bisping go back a long way from his season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ and I’ve done a lot of things for Michael Bisping, and Michael Bisping’s done a lot of things for me.””
“I’m in this situation right now where Bisping’s hurt,” White said. “This should be Bisping vs. Romero right now. Whittaker just destroyed ‘Jacare’ and Romero has been beating everybody along the way, waiting for this title shot.
“Bisping’s not ready yet. And if there was ever an interim title fight, how is this one not worthy? This fight’s going to be ridiculous.”
It’s true that White has alienated many with his confusing statements of late where it seems whatever he says will happen never does and what he says will not happens soon, and that hasn’t helped his reputation during a year where he’s publicly feuded with flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson in the midst of the one of the slowest starts to a year in terms of pay-per-view (PPV) sales in UFC history.
But White has one thing correct here, and that’s the insistence that Yoel Romero vs. Robert Whittaker promises to be a great fight. And whomever wins this weekend, White insists Bisping will fight the winner.
If we could only believe him.
