White Says Bisping vs Hamill 2 "a No-Brainer"

The debate will rage on until almost the end of the month, but by the time the second half of the light heavyweight picture has played out at UFC 76: Knockout, only those involved in the fight will still care quite so vociferously about the result of Michael Bisping vs Matt Hamill.

People are calling it the worst decision in the history of MMA, saying it’s a Dana White conspiracy, and that UFC is following the path of boxing where historically instances of hometown decisions, bribery and just plain bad decisions have been rife.

Having watched the fight several times through, I would not call it the worst decision, probably even calling it a bad decision is a little harsh. To me Hamill won the first clearly, Bisping the third and the second was up for grabs. The fact that Bisping did not dominate the third in the way that Hamill bossed the first does not matter - the rounds are all weighted equally. Perhaps the scoring system isn’t the best, but under the old rules (where, in the event of a decision, a judge simply wrote down who they thought won the fight) a fighter who dominated the last round was sometimes given a decision despite being outfought in the previous 2 rounds.

White was quick to rebuff any talk of a conspiracy, and also said that a rematch would be on its way, “I’ve seen a lot of bad decisions in boxing, basketball, football, and baseball, whether it’s by judges or referees, and I’ve definitely seen plenty right now in the last seven years in the UFC and The Ultimate Fighter, and this is why I tell these guys to never leave it in the hands of the judges, because everybody sees a fight differently. The bottom line is, both Michael Bisping and Matt Hamill fought their hearts out Saturday night, and I hope this scoring issue doesn’t put a damper on what was a great fight between two fighters with bright futures in this organization, and this is a no-brainer for a rematch. I know I am blown away by the amount of e-mails I have gotten from both sides and how passionate all the fans are about this fight. It’s exciting that people care that much.”

That White acknowledges a rematch is good because after watching the fight, and the title bout after it, neither fighter looked ready to be considered contenders for Quinton "Rampage" Jackson title. Bisping, who wanted to distance himself from the Ultimate Fighter series where the feud between the two began, was convinced of who won the fight, “I’ll give him the first round, I won the second, and I won the third.” However, he now finds himself drawn back into the old questions as to who would have really won the series had Hamill not withdrawn. Hamill, on the other hand, has shone in defeat - questions about a fragile jaw have been erased, and he gets excited about the possibility of a rematch, “I would love a rematch with him,” he said. “I would adjust my game plan to the situation of that particular time. As a fighter you never know what you may need to deal with. I want to fight him again. I don't care where: England, Cincinnati or a back alley in Manchester. I don't care, nothing about him scares me.”

Both fighters have done well in the aftermath of the fight, Bisping has gained some maybe unwanted notoriety but you cannot doubt that fans will flock to his next match, be it against Hamill or not, if only to see if he can erase what has become a stain on his record. Hamill has come out of this on a high, his reputation stronger than ever before and many doubters of his ability silenced. However, like I said before, the result of this fight will seem insignificant come the end of the month when fans see at UFC 76: Knockout how far Chuck Liddell needs to travel to regain his title, and the talent that is Mauricio Rua emerging into the worldwide market.