For 11 years, Michael Bisping has Left Hook Larry-ed himself up to the tallest heights of the UFC ladder. He’s earned the UFC middleweight title, avenged two of his worst losses in the process, got a pretty cushy desk job, and even some movie gigs. At the age of 38 and the verge of what could be his biggest fight of his career, Bisping is thinking that it may be time to hang it up while he’s on top. If he can beat the legend Georges St-Pierre at UFC 217, it’d be a helluva way to go out.<\/p>\n
“It\u2019s Georges St-Pierre. Everybody knows who Georges St-Pierre is. There\u2019s not many people who have crossed over from the MMA fanbase into the mainstream, and Georges, I\u2019d say he\u2019s there. Maybe not as much as, say, a Conor [McGregor] or a Ronda [Rousey], but he\u2019s not far behind, so it\u2019s a big fight. And Georges brings a lot to the table. He\u2019s a tough challenge, and as a said, it\u2019s a big fight. I think this is going to be the biggest MMA fight of the year. […] I think the career I\u2019ve had, the years I\u2019ve been in the UFC, the injuries I\u2019ve had, the ups and downs, getting close to title fights and all of this, there\u2019s a possibility \u2014 this might be my last ever fight. I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ll fight again after this. So, what a way to go out if it is.\u201d<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
https:\/\/twitter.com\/ufc\/status\/910164171861512192<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a 50\/50 [chance I retire]. It may or may not be. But not because \u2014 you know when you hear Dana [White] say, \u2018When people start talking about retirement, that means they\u2019re done.\u2019 That doesn\u2019t mean that at all. I\u2019m just trying to think smartly here, because you can\u2019t do it forever. You really can\u2019t. And you\u2019ve got to know when to walk away. We\u2019ll see, I\u2019m still enjoying it. I\u2019ve just had a great training session with [coach] Jason Parillo. Sparred five fives this morning, ran this morning. I\u2019m going to go train tonight. The fire is still there, I\u2019m still hungry as ever. I still love this sport and I\u2019m going to put a beating on GSP like he\u2019s never experienced. I\u2019m going to remind him why he retired.\u201d \u2014\u00a0Michael Bisping on Monday’s The MMA Hour<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n
While nothing is written in stone, Micheal Bisping did say his family and even his manager has been whispering the ‘R’ word in his ear. Retire or not, if Bisping beats St-Pierre, he’ll have the most fights in UFC history. He already has the record for most wins, as well as being the first ever English UFC champion. With a ton of projects outside of the UFC in the pipeline, it looks like Bisping would be taking a break from competition either way.<\/p>\n
\u201cNext year I\u2019ve got three acting projects lined up that are all big \u2014 three big movies and a Netflix series. I\u2019ve got things going on outside the Octagon and I\u2019ve got money that I can earn outside of the Octagon. […] If I can earn money outside of the Octagon that\u2019s just as good, that I don\u2019t have to risk my health for, then it makes sense, and I can retire as the champion and parlay that into an active, successful career outside of the Octagon.”<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n