"If that was me, you'd have got a way bigger reaction" - Michael Bisping gives his thoughts on Conor McGregor's insults after UFC 264 loss
Michael Bisping has not taken kindly to Conor McGregor's vicious comments in the post-fight interview after losing to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264. The former UFC middleweight champion reviewed the events of the PPV in a BT Sport video with Adam Catterall and Nick Peet.
'The Count' said he did not appreciate Conor McGregor's attacks on Dustin Poirier's wife, in addition to the death threats. The Englishman stated that if he were in Poirier's place, he would not have been as calm. Michael Bisping said:
"There was no need for that stuff with the wife. I mean, Dustin, he was so cool about it. But if that was me, you would've gotten a way bigger reaction. Listen, you can say what you want leading up to a fight, trash talk, whatever you want to call it. Fair. You know, about your opponent. Maybe about the team, the training partners, maybe about the coach. But wives? Children? They're off the table."
Speaking about the aftermath, Michael Bisping showed utmost respect to Dustin Poirier for keeping his composure. 'The Count' said:
"Yeah he [Poirier] was cool as a cucumber the whole time. Even when Conor was sitting on his backside, insulting his wife again after Dustin had just beaten him, he still didn't take the bait, he still didn't lower himself. So I've gotta say, nothing but admiration and respect for Dustin Poirier."
Analyzing Conor McGregor's return to trash-talking ways and his behaviour at the press conference, Michael Bisping opined that it seemed forced. He said:
"But yeah, like Nick said, it was kind of forced from Conor McGregor. I was looking at the YouTube section comments from the press conference and everyone was like, 'Who the hell is this guy? I don't know this Conor McGregor.' It was very forced, it was very nasty, and I do think he was trying to rev himself up. He knows how much pressure he was under in that situation. You know that was a big fight, and a big fight with big consequences if he were to lose. So I think what we saw was Conor being affected by the nerves and the pressure of the situation and therefore he was nasty. He was just as nasty at the Khabib press conference, but I don't think he did himself any favors in the course of public opinion."
Watch the full video below:
"You were getting dominated" - Michael Bisping believes Conor McGregor was outclassed by Dustin Poirier
Analyzing the UFC 264 fight itself, 'The Count' had some words of critique for Conor McGregor and his coach John Kavanagh. The SBG coach recently claimed in an interview with Laura Sanko that nothing about the first round between McGregor and Poirier concerned him.
Michael Bisping was shocked by the analysis, and said:
"If that's true, John Kavanagh, Conor should fire you immediately because that was very concerning. You [McGregor] were on your back and you were getting dominated. It was a 10-8 round, that's concerning."
'The Count' was referring to two out of three judges scoring the first round as 10-8 in favor of Dustin Poirier. While this is MMA and anything unpredictable can happen at any time, many pundits seem to agree that had the fight continued, it would've gotten worse for Conor McGregor.
Dana White has said that a fourth fight will happen after McGregor's recovery. Dustin Poirier also stated that he will fight McGregor again, whether in the octagon or on the sidewalk.