Michael Bisping has branded himself ‘fake humble’ as he placed himself number three on a list of the UK’s greatest ever fighters.
The former UFC middleweight champion is an undeniable legend of the sport in his native England. He was the first British fighter to win a world title in the promotion, and had to beat the likes of Anderson Silva, Matt Hamill and Jason Miller just to get a late notice shot at the belt in 2016.
His CV is stacked with top names whether he won or lost those fights. And when he retired in 2018 it was later revealed that he had done most of it with one eye after suffering a horror injury against Vitor Belfort in January of 2013.
Michael Bisping doesn’t put himself atop list of UK’s greatest UFC fighters
During the UFC 304 weigh-in show in Manchester yesterday, Michael Bisping joined a panel hosted by broadcaster John Gooden that featured Michael ‘Venom’ Page and Daniel Cormier. The team on the show all announced their top five fighters from the UK, unanimously placing Bisping at number one.
There was a general belief that due to their positions as world champions, the top three had to be some variation of Bisping, Leon Edwards and Tom Aspinall. The latter is interim heavyweight champion, but his division is currently the subject of much controversy given undisputed champion Jon Jones’ inactivity.
And while the former middleweight champion wasn’t bold enough to leave himself off the list entirely, he did place himself below Edwards and Aspinall in third place. He felt the current welterweight champion, who faces Belal Muhammad tonight in Manchester, was number one with Aspinall second.
Michael Bisping insists he is ‘fake humble’ after naming top UK fighters
After admitting that he felt bad leaving Page off his list despite being sat across from the top welterweight, Bisping gave his picks. He noted that his fellow Brit would be champion one day, but didn’t put him on the list.
When Cormier noticed that Bisping had placed himself as low as number three, he replied: “Well, I’m not a complete egomaniac like some people, DC.” The ex-heavyweight and light-heavyweight champion then told him that he ‘should be one’.
Bisping joked that he ‘should be one’, before claiming that he is simply “fake humble,” and placing Darren Till in a controversial fourth spot with Ross Pearson at fifth. The choice of Till on a couple of lists proved slightly divisive with some fans on social media given his run of form before leaving the UFC.
Cormier placed Dan Hardy at number five, with Till at four and Aspinall at three and Bisping beating out Edwards for top spot. He justified his list as including the men who had competed for world titles within the promotion.
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