UFC middleweight Michael Bisping recently received some good news. He was cleared to resume training following surgery to repair a detached retina in his right eye. Bisping's goal is to step into the Octagon for his next fight sometime in March or April 2014.
Bisping (24-5), the No. 4 ranked fighter in the UFC's Middleweight division has alternated wins and losses over the course of his last five fights. Bisping has defeated Jason Miller, Brian Stann and Alan Belcher while losing to Chael Sonnen and Vitor Belfort. Prior to that recent run, Bisping's record was 11-3 with the organization.
The UFC has a number of fighters that matchmaker Joe Silva could consider for Bisping's return bout. One of those fighters has been much more vocal about his desire to face Bisping, and that is No. 10 ranked Tim Kennedy (17-4).
Kennedy has been campaigning for a fight with Bisping for some time, a fact that was addressed when Bisping took part in a Q&A session prior to UFC Fight Night 33 in Brisbane, Australia.
When asked why he would want to fight someone ranked lower than him in the 185-pound division, Bisping responded:
Here's the thing, and the answer is very, very simple why I would event entertain a fight with Tim Kennedy. He's had three fights in the UFC against no marks, and he didn't even look that good in those fights. He's been calling me out for years, and at the start I didn't want to respond to any of his tweets because it's giving him what he wants, he's trying to create a buzz about himself. But he's been going on so much, he's really driving me up the wall, and I just really, really want to punch him in the face so I might as well get paid for it.
So, I might as well call the UFC, get paid, and beat him up.
As for other fighters that he could potentially face when he fights for the first time since defeating Belcher in April of this year, Bisping said:
In a perfect world, I want a fight that's going to propel me toward a total fight. That's still my dream. The middleweight division now is absolutely stacked, so probably Jacare (Souza), (Lyoto) Machida, or (Luke) Rockhold. The list is non-stop. Mark Munoz, me and him agreed to fight, so maybe there's unfinished business there as well.
After running through the list of other options he may have, Bisping returned to Kennedy, remarking:
Tim Kennedy, he's doing a good job of getting himself punched in the face if he carries on, so probably Tim Kennedy.
Now, all Bisping has to do is make that call to matchmaker Silva.
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