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| Credit : UFC |
Scrutinise or applaud him, one thing nobody can deny is that when Michael 'The Count' Bisping (25-6) shows up, it's going to be a relentless war, and when that cage door slams shut in Sydney, you can rest assured that Luke Rockhold (12-2) will be matching the Englishman punch for punch.
Entering into his 22nd UFC bout, Bisping has been known throughout his career to carry one significant trait, to fall at the final hurdle. Those inside the MMA bubble have always ranked him alongside the elite middleweights in the world, however that golden ticket to the title shot has slipped through his fingers on too many occasions.
At 35-years-old, battling an eye injury and coming up short against Tim Kennedy, the general consensus was that Bisping's hopes of winning the belt were finally over. Fast forward just four months and he's right back in the mix, following an arguably career-best performance against Cung Le.
Bisping's next challenge now comes in the former Strikeforce Middleweight champion, Luke Rockhold. A heated rivalry that has threatened to spill over on numerous occasions will be settled on Friday night and a win for Bisping could propel him ever closer to a championship bout.
The pair have gone back and forth in the media since the grudge match was officially announced back in September and speaking this week ahead of the fight, the feud continued to snowball, and despite tarnishing his name at every chance, Bisping says that Rockhold isn't 'obsessing' over his opponent.
"Luke Rockhold is not somebody that I obsess about. He’s not somebody that I care about. I’m here to do my job, to put on an entertaining fight for the fans and I’ve done that throughout my entire career and this will be another occasion where I will do that. I’m going down to Sydney to take care of business and I get to shut this guy up in the process so that is, of course, a bonus."
Despite the bad blood and trash talking, Bisping understands the impact a win over Rockhold does for his title aspirations and he was open about his tendency to collapse when it comes to crunch time.
"I’ve got to the top of the sport and then I fell short. But I think the fact that I’ve been there so many times is a testament to my fighting ability, my character and my will to win. I’ve dusted myself off and come back a better fighter.
"I’ve truly learned from all my losses and I’m still as hungry as the first day that I ever put a pair of gloves on. I still want to be World Champion; I know I can do it. I am physically in my prime and I’m mentally better than ever."
Now the only problem with all this intense animosity heading into a fight is the emotional overload. Fighters fail to perform at their best when their head isn't in the right place and passion outweighs technique, however Rockhold is adamant that he's focused.
"I’m never going to let emotions get the better of me. I’m prepared and I’m as competitive as I have ever been. I’m going to go out there and just do my job."
Rockhold did however reserve some time to compliment Bisping, but he feels he will be one step ahead of his opponent no matter what, even in the area of testosterone, metaphorically of course.
"I’m more of a man than him, I’m going to out-strike him, I am very confident on my feet. I can’t take away – he’s good on his feet, he throws off a lot of people, but he’s about to realise that I am on another level right now."
All the talking has been done, it's time now for both men to throw down the gauntlet and discover who the better man really is, it all goes down this Friday night in Sydney, Australia.
Despite the bad blood and trash talking, Bisping understands the impact a win over Rockhold does for his title aspirations and he was open about his tendency to collapse when it comes to crunch time.
"I’ve got to the top of the sport and then I fell short. But I think the fact that I’ve been there so many times is a testament to my fighting ability, my character and my will to win. I’ve dusted myself off and come back a better fighter.
"I’ve truly learned from all my losses and I’m still as hungry as the first day that I ever put a pair of gloves on. I still want to be World Champion; I know I can do it. I am physically in my prime and I’m mentally better than ever."
Now the only problem with all this intense animosity heading into a fight is the emotional overload. Fighters fail to perform at their best when their head isn't in the right place and passion outweighs technique, however Rockhold is adamant that he's focused.
"I’m never going to let emotions get the better of me. I’m prepared and I’m as competitive as I have ever been. I’m going to go out there and just do my job."
Rockhold did however reserve some time to compliment Bisping, but he feels he will be one step ahead of his opponent no matter what, even in the area of testosterone, metaphorically of course.
"I’m more of a man than him, I’m going to out-strike him, I am very confident on my feet. I can’t take away – he’s good on his feet, he throws off a lot of people, but he’s about to realise that I am on another level right now."
All the talking has been done, it's time now for both men to throw down the gauntlet and discover who the better man really is, it all goes down this Friday night in Sydney, Australia.
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