Bisping’s back home with eye on revenge
UFC middleweight champion Michael Bisping plans on making it a homecoming to remember when he faces Dan Henderson at the Manchester Arena on October 8.
The Clitheroe fighter will have revenge on his mind when he puts his title on the line at UFC 204, with Henderson knocking out Bisping when the two men previously met in 2009.
Things will be different this time around as Bisping will have around 20,000 adoring Manchester fans cheering him on for the rematch, and he wants to send them home happy.
“I’ll be making my first ever defence in Manchester so it’s what dreams are made of really,” he told M.E.N. Sport.
“Henderson viciously knocked me out when we last fought and any fighter would want to get retribution and get a win back.
“I don’t underestimate anybody but I honestly believe that I’m too fast for him and too skilled.
“I’m getting better and better and now that I’m 37 years old you would think it would be the opposite, but I’ve found my groove lately
“He’s saying he will retire win or lose after this fight but it won’t be a fairytale ending for him.
“He’ll be finishing his career on the back of a beating that he will have never experienced before.
“It was a terrible night at the office for me in 2009 so well done to him, but the guy that Henderson is facing on October 8 is not the same guy he fought back then.”
Bisping’s fight against Henderson is being shown live on pay-per-view in the US, meaning that the bout will have to take place at 5am here in Manchester.
While the 37-year-old admits it is slightly frustrating for his fans, he insists that it will be a night to remember.
“It’s early hours of the morning and I know it is a bit disruptive, but we’ve done it before for Ricky Hatton and Joe Calzaghe,” he said.
“The economics of the situation is that mixed martial arts is a US-driven sport, so a big title fight like this has to be on PPV. It’s something different so a part of me thinks that it’s going to be very cool. It’s a late one and there’s going to be some sore heads on Monday, but none sorer than mine after my fight!”
This will be Bisping’s first fight back in Manchester for nearly seven years, but he was previously set to compete here in 2013.
A serious eye injury forced him out of that planned fight in 2013, and at one stage it looked like he may not be able to step back into the cage again. Bisping managed to overcome adversity though and make his return, but he admits that the last few years of his career have been a rollercoaster. “All fighters want to be champion one day, but you have to be a realist and it got to a stage when I thought I’d never achieve that,” he said. “I had lost a few key match-ups and even though I was still hungry and it was a desire of mine, I’d come to peace with knowing it may not happen. “I’ve managed to finally win the belt and now I’m in a fortunate position where I’ve earned a decent living and I’m taking care of my family. “When I was younger I was doing every deadend job under the sun and probably worked in half of the factories around Manchester, so I’m a lucky man.” Tickets for UFC 204: Bisping vs Henderson go on sale on September 9 via Eventim and Ticketmaster. Michael Bisping