There was a time in Michael Bisping’s career where there may have been nothing he wanted more than a fight with then-UFC Middleweight Champion Anderson Silva. Now that the bout could potentially become a reality, he’s no longer seeing it as a fight necessarily worth taking.
In an interview with MMAJunkie.com, Bisping said Silva’s failed drug tests earlier this year for drostanolone have soured him on the idea of that fight, and he’d rather fight someone who hasn’t had the history of PED use shared by many of his opponents from the past several years.
“You know, to be honest, I’ve always wanted to fight Anderson Silva. Everybody knows that. That’s been well documented. But, I don’t know if I feel the same about that right now,” Bisping said. “The fact is, I kind of said to myself recently, ‘Anybody that tests positive for performance-enhancing drugs, I want no part of it.’ As far as I’m concerned, you’ve been a cheat. I don’t think that at 39 years old, having the career that Anderson Silva had, I don’t think you make the decision at 39 years old to try this new thing called steroids. I think he must have been on the juice the whole time.
“I’ve never used any of that stuff, and I don’t see why I should have to fight people who have used those products. So, I don’t know whether I would take a fight with Anderson Silva after that’s all said and done.”
Penick’s Analysis: Can’t blame Bisping if that’s his stance given just how many fighters he’s faced who have either failed drug tests before or since he fought them. Still, it’s about as big a fight as Bisping could hope for at the moment, so it’s still entirely possible that the fight is what’s next for him. Of course, he leaves the possibility open here, saying he just doesn’t know whether he’d accept it right now, but if and when it gets officially offered, he may change his mind yet again.
[Bisping art by Grant Gould (c) MMATorch.com]
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