‘Hard work’, ‘blood sweat and tears’ and ‘started from nothing’ are quotes you can probably find in any athlete’s latest autobiography, but nobody epitomises this more than Michael Bisping.
‘The Count’ worked in slaughterhouses, factories and demolition companies, as well as working as a tiler, postman and salesman. A jack of all trades some may say, but a pretty average life of a man from Clitheroe, Lancashire.
Clitheroe isn’t known as a hotbed of sporting talent. A small town 35 miles north of Manchester played host to the upbringing of a future champion, but it looked like the UFC middleweight crown would always elude Bisping.
After winning his first 10 fights as a professional, with eight of those coming in the very first round, Bisping was making a name for himself on the domestic scene in a sport that paled in comparison to the global and domestic appeal of the UFC we know today. The Ultimate Fighter played host to the Englishman’s talent, who won all three fights to win the light-heavyweight edition of the competition.
Only eight contestants of the show have gone on to clinch the UFC title in 12 years. Bisping went on to win his first three bouts after winning the show, before tasting defeat for the first time against Rashad Evans at UFC 78, almost 10 years ago.
Mixed martial arts was still a niche sport in the UK at this time, having pockets of die-hard supporters but hadn’t scratched the surface of the mainstream following that would follow during the McGregor-era.
After losing his unbeaten record, Bisping dropped down to middleweight and hit the ground running with three consecutive victories earning the Brit a title eliminator at the marquee UFC 100 event against Dan Henderson. The American knocked out Bisping in brutal fashion, with an overhand right sending him hurtling towards the canvas followed by a diving punch to render Bisping unconscious.
#5 Dan Henderson VS Michael Bisping UFC 100 - July 11, 2009
Credits - UFC/@UFC
He bounced back from the loss by winning five of his next six bouts, losing only to Wanderlei Silva and in turn earning another middleweight title eliminator. Chael Sonnen would be the man standing in Bisping’s way of a shot at UFC gold. When the Brit lost out to Sonnen on the judge’s scorecards over fifteen minutes, many thought his time had been and gone.
Bisping then went 3-3 in his following fights, culminating in a loss to Luke Rockhold at the end of 2014. At this point, the Brit was looking towards life after fighting in the movie/television industry.
Two decision victories over CB Dolloway and Thales Leites followed in 2015 and with the octagon returning to London in 2016, he was scheduled to face Gegard Mousasi in the main event, his first fight in London since UFC 120 in 2010.
Around the festive period, mixed martial arts fans were treated to a surprise from the UFC, as Anderson Silva would be announced as a replacement for Mousasi to fight Bisping at the event.
Brazil’s Anderson Silva has widely been considered as the greatest mixed martial artist of all time and held a 16-2 record in the octagon. It represented a marquee name that meant a victory would put Bisping in the upper echelons of the middleweight division.
As Blur’s Song 2 roared at the O2 Arena, there was a sense of anticipation as one of the best match ups in the octagon came to England. Bisping edged the opening two rounds before Silva dropped the Brit at the end of the third round, celebrating on top of the cage when the fight had not been stopped by referee Herb Dean.
Bisping had to recover for the fourth round and did so, landing at volume before Silva come back to show his class in the fifth round. A tight scorecard followed but the right decision was awarded with Bisping taking the nod unanimously.
In the months that followed, Bisping struggled to find an opponent. The top fighters at 185 pounds were all booked with former foe and now champion Luke Rockhold defending the belt against Chris Weidman. Fate and destiny would swing in Bisping’s favour however with Weidman removed from the fight with two weeks to spare due to injury.
Step up, Michael Bisping. Two weeks notice to face a man labelled by many as a potential superstar of the sport. Rockhold had defeated Bisping so convincingly in 2014 that many thought the outcome was simply going to remain the same.
The Brit had been away filming the xXx movie which would imply that he would not be in a training camp for his next bout. UFC 199 rolled around the corner and Bisping was one of the largest underdogs in a title fight in the sport's history, despite having held an 18-7 record.
Bisping said it was his destiny to win the belt, and he did just that. After a cagey back and forth, ‘The Count’ floored Rockhold with a left hand, and before the American managed to get back to his feet, sent him back to the canvas with the same shot and history was made in just shy of four minutes.
The United Kingdom had our first champion. After 10 years in the sport, countless setbacks and injuries, Bisping had climbed to the top of the pile at 37-years-old. Dan Henderson, who delivered that brutal blow at UFC 100 had defeated Hector Lombard earlier that evening and the stage was set for the rematch seven years on.
Manchester would play host to Bisping’s homecoming. The country got behind their champion like no other, selling out the Manchester Arena in minutes despite the title fight being scheduled to get underway at 05:30am to cater for the US pay-per-view audience. For Bisping this was all about revenge.
The atmosphere was electric, especially considering that 16,000 people had piled into the arena as the sun set and left after the sun had risen again. It was a special scene for UK MMA regardless of the result.
The first round sees Henderson floor Bisping, almost finishing the fight with another diving punch. The Brit just manages to recover to his feet and has blood leaking across his face already. Henderson knocks Bisping down again in the second round, but the champion outperforms his opponent in the rest of the round. Either way the scorecard is tight, with the challenger potentially two rounds up.
Bisping’s gas tank shows as he comes to life in the third round, pressing the pace whilst Henderson looks to land that overhand right yet again. Dan Henderson is forty-six-years-old at this point and it appears to show as he begins breathing heavily. The fourth round heads the same way, Bisping presses the pace and lands the better shots but the potential is always there for Dan Henderson to land that famous right hand.
Bisping is bloodied and beaten, but the final round looks likely to decide the winner and Bisping continued to press the pace past the twenty-minute mark. Henderson landed a takedown. The Manchester Arena rose to their feet at almost 6AM to applaud both warriors.
The Legendary Bruce Buffer confirmed that Michael Bisping had won the bout on the judges’ scorecards unanimously and the working-class man from Clitheroe had successfully avenged his worst defeat and defended his belt in Manchester.
Michael Bisping now has the most wins in the history of the UFC with a total of 20, surpassing Georges St Pierre who has the chance to equal that record if he can defeat Bisping this weekend.
Love him or hate him. You can’t deny that Michael Bisping has sacrificed and put in the hours to get this moment. If anyone deserves a big money fight in Madison Square Garden… it’s Britain’s only UFC champion.
