Bisping: How GSP can get out of title defense requirement
Michael Bisping: “[GSP] brings the huge Canadian market with him and that’s what the UFC are after. They want all those Canadians to start buying the pay-per-views again.”
UFC welterweight G.O.A.T. Georges St-Pierre appeared recently on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour and revealed that if he beats middleweight champion Michael Bisping at UFC 217 on November 4, he contractually must defend the title against interim champion Robert Whittaker. However, during his latest Believe You Me podcast, Bisping said GSP has an out.
Georges is still in the position of power, much as I don’t like to admit that,” said Bisping as transcribed by Jed Meshew for MMA Fighting. “Listen, I’m fighting GSP and I have a fan base and people like to watch me fight or people like to see me get knocked out. Win or lose, people do tune in. But GSP is a big name and he brings the huge Canadian market with him and that’s what the UFC are after. They want all those Canadians to start buying the pay-per-views again. From what I’m hearing, pay-per-view sales in Canada haven’t been doing too well lately so they want GSP to come back and they want all those people, all those lumberjacks to start buying the Pay-Per-Views again.
If, God forbid, he beats me, he has it in the contract that he has to fight Robert Whittaker. But he can retire. He can retire if he wants. They cannot force you to fight. So let’s say he was to say, ‘I retire’ and then say, ‘Hey, listen, I’ll come out of retirement to fight at 170. UFC, do you want to sell all those pay-per-views again, yes or no? It’s up to you.’ So really . . . one would assume that he can really do what he wants. They can’t force him to fight.
He’s in the position of power, really. Of course, Dana’s the promoter, the UFC are the promoters but we’re the fighters and GSP has that Canadian market that buys pay-per-views. Unfortunately for me, I’ve got a fantastic following in the UK – I have a great following and God bless you all – but the way it’s structured in the UK, we get the UFC for free. There’s no pay-per-view so there’s limited – it’s a big attraction to the UFC to have the U.K. market but to have the Canadian market that has a history of buying pay-per-views, you pay for the UFC in Canada so that’s more beneficial to the UFC.
UFC 217 will be held on November 4, 2017 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York.
