The UFC’s new middleweight champion Michael Bisping has revealed that he’s hoping to make a triumphant return to the UK for the first defense of his belt.
“I had a discussion with the president of UFC, Dana White, and I said I’d love to defend my title in the UK but we’ll see,” Bisping said in an interview with BBC’s Newsbeat. “It’s obviously down to what the UFC wants to do next but I’m very much focussed on defending the belt.
The old saying is, ‘You’re not the champion until you defend it’, so I do intend on defending this belt and defending it successfully.”
Meanwhile, Bisping says he’s thoroughly enjoying life as champion, just over a week since he knocked out Luke Rockhold in the first round at UFC 199 to achieve his dream of winning the belt.
“It’s crazy, the life of a champion – I never realised how different it was,” Bisping said.
“I’m certainly enjoying it so far. The treatment you get from the people, the treatment you get from the UFC, the influence you have in your next steps moving forward.
“There are lots of offers and deals and sponsorships – there are all kinds of things coming in. It’s very, very nice.”
The 37 year-old says he’s now planning to go on a well-earned holiday with his family before he homes in on who his next opponent will be.
