“I f***ed up the whole division. I put Bisping in a place where he feels empowered and he’s trying to pick and choose his fights. I think it’s put a strain on everything, on all the matchups that need to happen. My bad. I f***ed up. I’m sorry to the fighters and I’m sorry to the fans that they have to deal with this piece of s***.”
-Luke Rockhold talks to Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour about how his loss to Michael Bisping screwed up the middleweight field.
Penick’s Analysis: Given the UFC seems to be seriously considering giving Dan Henderson a title shot, yeah, Rockhold’s loss really threw this division on its head. Had Rockhold won he’d have probably fought “Jacare” Souza by September or perhaps even the Chris Weidman rematch in New York. The latter may still happen, but now it seems like title shots will elude all three men while the UFC gives Henderson a shot, or Georges St-Pierre, or some other out of left field contender rather than someone who’s legitimately earned it. Rockhold, Weidman, and Souza now just get to stay busy elsewhere while Bisping faces anyone but them for the time being.
[Photo (c) Jake Roth via USA Today Sports]
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