The main event of UFC 317 has huge hype behind it, and Michael Bisping thinks he knows who is going to win.
The fight sees Ilia Topuria and Charles Oliveira battling over the vacant UFC Lightweight title, following Islam Makhachev relinquishing the belt to move up to Welterweight.
Topuria vacated the UFC Featherweight title to jump up to Lightweight, and could become a two-weight champion with a victory on June 28.
Oliveira will be hoping to stop him by becoming a two-time champion, but Michael Bisping has doubts about the Brazilian’s chances.
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Michael Bisping doesn’t think Charles Oliveira can reinvent himself to beat Ilia Topuria at UFC 317
Former UFC Middleweight champion Bisping thinks that Oliveira will struggle against Topuria in the main event of UFC 317.
On his YouTube channel, Bisping explained that he needs to turn this fight into a brawl, which he doesn’t think the 36-year-old will be able to do.
Topuria already predicted how the fight will end, and Bisping’s assessment isn’t far from the Georgian’s own.
Bisping said: “I have so much respect for this guy. However, he ain’t going to reinvent himself at 36 years old. He isn’t going to change a thing.
“And Ilia is correct. He is going to walk at him, because that’s what he does. He can’t stand there and reinvent himself and go toe-to-toe with Ilia. He can’t look to pick his shots and be calculated, that’s what Ilia does.
“He has to turn it into an absolute brawl. Turn it into madness. Get a hold of him, drive a knee up the middle, drop an elbow. Maybe Ilia makes a mistake and he slaps on a gogoplata or a flying triangle, whatever it is.
“But if he changes, he’s playing into the hands of Ilia. If he walks forward like a buzzsaw, he’s also playing into the hands of Ilia.
“That’s why Charles Oliveira is so excited. Because that is how he can win his fights. And he can’t change.”
His inability to change his style is one thing that Bisping thinks will be Oliveira’s downfall at UFC 317.
Ilia Topuria will become a two-weight champion, according to Michael Bisping
Despite loving the way Oliveira fights in the octagon, Bisping cannot look past Topuria when making his pick to win the UFC Lightweight championship.
He predicts that Oliveira will come forward to challenge Topuria and take a big hit and potentially get knocked out cold by the Georgian.
In the same prediction, Bisping said: “Speaking of style, that is something Ilia has in abundance. Whether it’s the way he fights, the way he dresses, or the little gesture of handing his opponent a rose in the Octagon, the man’s a class act.
“He’s an absolute superstar, and he will go on to become a two-division champion.
“That’s right, my friends, he gets the job done this weekend. I think he’s absolutely nailed it. I think Charles Oliveira goes forward and gets caught with something big.
“And let’s be honest, we’ve all seen it. It only takes one. That’s the kind of power he has. Can he drop Charles Oliveira like that? Knock him out cold? That remains to be seen.
“But my pick: Ilia will be the lightweight champion of the world.”
Topuria will clash with Oliveira in the main event of UFC 317, with both men attempting to become two-time world champions.