- Justin Gaethje hit out at Michael Bisping for allegedly doing a biased commentary on Leon Edwards vs. Kamaru Usman trilogy bout at UFC 286
- “The Count” made several mistakes throughout the event
UFC 286 turned out to be another epic event for the UFC but one member of the commentary crew, Michael Bisping, is now under fire for an apparently terrible job on the microphone. UFC lightweight contender Justin Gaethje did not mince his words during his post-fight press conference in voicing his disappointment over Bisping’s performance.
VICTORYYYYYYY #UFC286 pic.twitter.com/frGzG9Kmaw
— UFC (@ufc) March 18, 2023
It was biased
According to Gaethje, he honestly thought that his training partner and title challenger Kamaru Usman beat the champ Leon Edwards. But on the other hand, “The Highlight” also thought he might have been biased. But even if he was, Gaethje said it pales in comparison to that of Bisping’s biased commentary.
“I thought [Usman] won the fight,” Gaethje told reporters. “But I’m probably as biased as the judges. Certainly not as biased as Michael Bisping, who shouldn’t have been nowhere near a microphone during that fight. It sucks.”
Bisping is a compatriot of Edwards as they both hailed from the UK. Gaethje, meanwhile, has been training with Usman. When asked if he thinks the UFC shouldn’t allow commentators who are friends with a fighter on the card to call a bout, Gaethje said it’s beyond his concerns and all he could say is that “The Count” called the match in a “very unprofessional” way.
“It’s not my call. I just thought it was very unprofessional,” Gaethje concluded.
Unlike Usman, who lost to Edwards via decision, Gaethje secured a decision victory over Rafael Fiziev in their co-main event bout.
Bisping had a tongue twister
It’s kind of hard to tell what the deal was with Bisping that night, but one thing certain was that the former middleweight champion was having troubles pronouncing the correct names of some fighters.
First, Bisping mistakenly said “some sex” when what he wanted to say was “some success” while doing some intro for Luana Carolina during the early prelims.
“She was having some sex”
– Michael Bisping#UFC286 pic.twitter.com/SKJrpr3yWV— MMA Mania (@mmamania) March 18, 2023
He did it again when he was concluding the performance of Jake Hadley on Malcolm Gordon by repeatedly coming up with a wrong name saying, “Malcolm Martin” and “Malcolm X.”
“Look at him playing the drums on Malcolm Martin’s head…Malcolm X’s head…Malcom Gordon’s head” pic.twitter.com/g3Kz5YaQRe
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) March 18, 2023
Bisping only filled in for longtime UFC color commentator Joe Rogan, who opted not to call UFC 286 as he has been avoiding long trips.