The decision to accept a bout against Georges St-Pierre was an easy one for Michael Bisping to make.
Bisping, who is the reigning Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweight title holder, told fans and the media that he’d take a fight with “Rush” if the opportunity presented itself. He wasn’t lying as earlier today (March 1) UFC President Dana White announced the 185-pound title bout for later this year.
The match-up leaves No. 1 ranked middleweight Yoel Romero in limbo. “The Soldier of God” is on an eight-fight winning streak. He knocked out former UFC middleweight champion Chris Weidman with a flying knee to the side of the head.
“The Count” didn’t hesitate to accept the offer from White to make the bout with St-Pierre a reality. He told UFC Tonight that he had put the fight on the side because “Rush” and the UFC couldn’t make a deal happen back in Oct. 2016. When Bisping got the call, it was music to his ears (via MMAJunkie.com):
“This fight was first offered to me around last October but he couldn’t come to terms with the UFC, so I kind of put that fight out of my mind. So I started thinking about the next contenders in the UFC. Then of course I got a phone call a week ago from (UFC President) Dana White saying, ‘The fight is back on the table. Georges wants to fight you, and it’s a big fight.’ Of course I said, ‘Yes.’ Georges St-Pierre’s a legendary fighter. He’s had one of the best careers, or the best career in the history of the sport. He was a dominant welterweight champion for a long, long time – fought so many people, beat so many people – and is one of the biggest proven pay-per-view draws that the company has ever seen. So of course taking this fight was an absolute no-brainer.”
