Michael Bisping Will ‘Probably Flirt With The Idea’ Of Fighting
At 39 years old, former UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping officially announced his retirement from mixed martial arts last week.
And while the fact that he’s coming off of back-to-back stoppage losses may have played a role in his decision, he recently revealed that his health was the leading factor in his choice to hang up his gloves for good:
“It’s been a hell of a ride, it’s been amazing, but I knew watching that movie, I’m like, yeah, this is it, this is the end,” Bisping said on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour. “I can’t do this to my family anymore. I can’t do it to myself. Obviously my eye is in terrible shape, and my good eye, I’m having a couple of issues with that as well. Nobody wants to go blind, and a friend of mine as well said, ‘You know if you went blind, you would give any amount of money in the world and get your sight back,’ and of course you would, so it just isn’t worth it.”
A legend of the sport, Bisping is not only a former 185-pound champion but a former The Ultimate Fighter Winner as well. He’s also had the most fights in the UFC and is tied only with Georges St. Pierre and Donald Cerrone for the most wins in UFC history.
Clearly, “The Count” has accomplished it all, but he admitted that he’ll likely still ‘flirt’ with the idea of making a return, although he also confirmed that he’s taken himself out of the USADA testing pool, essentially making his retirement set in stone:
“Now, that doesn’t mean I’m not going to miss it terribly,” he said. “I’m going to miss it every day. Every time I watch a fight, I’m going to wish I could do it. So, I will miss the sport terribly, I’ll still train, still keep in shape. I’ll probably still flirt with the idea of having a fight again, so that why I told the UFC to take me out of the USADA testing pool, so it’s not just as easy as saying I’ll fight next month. No, I’ve got to go through the testing pool again, so I’m officially retired on all fronts.”
What will you remember most about Bisping?
