MONTREAL – Michael Bisping admits he needs pre-fight banter to heighten his intensity for competition. So when UFC 186 opponent C.B. Dollaway hinted he’d like to force “The Count” into retirement, Bisping took exception.
“How dare he have the audacity to stand in the octagon with me? He said he’s going to retire me, so I take that personally,” Bisping said today at a media day in Montreal. “I’m nowhere near the end of my career. But C.B. Dollaway has just spiced it up a little bit for me this week.”
In the weeks leading up to the fight, Bisping (25-7 MMA, 15-7 UFC) and Dollaway (15-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC) spoke little of each other in the media. As fight night grows nearer, though, the attention on the middleweight pair has grown.
Although Dollaway has kept his remarks mostly respectful, Bisping said he makes a concentrated effort to grasp onto any ammunition that will help him become more invested in the contest.
“He’s been very quiet, he hasn’t really said anything, but he said one thing and that kind of irked me a little bit,” Bisping said. “It’s pumped me up the wrong way, which is great, that’s what I need. I tend to, as the fight gets closer and closer, I’ll find whatever small fragment of disrespect that I can and I’ll cling on to that and build it up. I’ll make a mountain out of a molehill. As I said, I’ll make him pay the price.”
Bisping and Dollaway compete on UFC 186’s pay-per-view main card following prelims on FOX Sports 1 and UFC Fight Pass at Montreal’s Bell Centre.
Both fighters will enter the contest with the intention of rebounding from decisive losses. Luke Rockhold submitted Bisping at UFC Fight Night 55 in November; Dollaway was quickly stopped by a Lyoto Machida body kick in December’s UFC Fight Night 58 headliner.
Although the losses marked a setback in both men’s attempt to climb the middleweight ranks, Bisping believes he has a greater chance to get back on track. Dollaway may have strong wrestling with knockout power in his strikes, but Bisping said “The Doberman” doesn’t posses any skills he can’t handle.
“I believe that every punch that he throws he’s going to look to close the distance and get his hands on me and clinch,” Bisping told MMAjunkie. “He’s a wrestler. Can he punch a little bit? Yes he can. But his forte is wrestling, and he’s going to do that.
“I’ve got good wrestling; I’ve got great anti-wrestling. Obviously his offensive wrestling is better, but defensively he’s got nothing I haven’t seen before. I’ve just got to shrug off his takedowns and hopefully get that knockout.”
Bisping and Dollaway are two of the longest tenured active 185-pound fighters on the UFC roster. They have a combined 37 octagon appearances. Bisping made his UFC debut in June 2006; Dollaway joined the organization in two years later.
Although Dollaway has faced elite competition in the past, including a former UFC champion, Bisping said he can feel his opponent’s fear and expects a blowout performance at UFC 186.
“He’s going to be terrified – he is terrified,” Bisping said. “He knows he’s lost this fight. He’s turning up for the paycheck. It’s done. It’s a formality. I’m just going to turn up and actually carry out the process of beating him.”
UFC 186's Michael Bisping: 'Terrified' C.B. Dollaway is just 'turning up for the paycheck'
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