Michael Bisping’s first title defense was a success at UFC 204, but one middleweight contender thinks taking away the Englishman’s belt won’t be too difficult of a task.
Gegard Mousasi, who also fought at UFC 204 and obliterated Vitor Belfort via TKO in the second round for his third consecutive win, turned up the heat to another level during the UFC 204 post-fight press conference by throwing some shade at the middleweight champion.
“I’ll fight Michael Bisping,” Mousasi said. “With his performance tonight? I like Michael Bisping. But you guys know I can beat Michael Bisping. I will jab his face the whole night. Easy.”
Bisping struggled at times during his championship bout against 46-year-old Dan Henderson. He was knocked down three times and sported a bloody face by the end of the fight.
Mousasi also fought Henderson in 2015 and beat him via TKO in the first round. Mousasi believes that’s enough to warrant a title belt fight against Bisping in the near future.
The trash talk was a little unusual for Mousasi, who generally tends to stay out of the limelight, but that changed following his UFC 204 win. Aside from taking shots at Bisping, Mousasi also threw Conor McGregor under the bus.
“Maybe I’ll throw some bottles at someone’s head and people will notice me,” Mousasi said, referring to McGregor’s infamous water bottle incident with Nate Diaz at the UFC 202 pre-fight press conference. “McGregor is good for the sport, but what is it? You had Muhammad Ali. He was a hero. He did big things. But now you have (Floyd) Mayweather and McGregor. Everybody loves it. That sells. People are stupid. They don’t know who’s a real fighter.”
We’ll see soon if Mousasi’s new aggressive tactics in public, along with his recent dominance in the octagon, will land him a title shot against Bisping.
Thumbnail photo via Per Haljestam/USA TODAY Sports Images
