[autotag]Michael Bisping[/autotag] liked everything from [autotag]Joaquin Buckley[/autotag] at UFC on ESPN 56 – except his post-fight callout.
Buckley (19-6 MMA, 9-4 UFC) impressed in his unanimous decision win over Nursulton Ruziboev (34-9-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) in Saturday’s welterweight co-main event from his home city of St. Louis.
“New Mansa” campaigned for a spot on the card, and made the most out of the opportunity – from engaging with the Uzbekistani fans, to putting on arguably his most well-rounded performance to date.
“Take a bow – this man is a star,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “He has got so much charisma. I’m telling you, Buckley owned fight week.”
Bisping admits he thought Buckley appeared overconfident against a dangerous opponent in Ruziboev, but was very impressed with how good he looked.
“Buckley was talking like (Ruziboev) was no threat, and I was concerned for him,” Bisping said. “I was like, ‘I think you’re taking this too lightly.’ I never said that to him, but that’s what I thought. I thought, ‘I don’t think you’re recognizing the threat, and there’s a potential for a great downfall.’ … He showed no signs of being under pressure. He showed no signs of being outskilled.
“In fact, he was the better fighter from start to finish – hitting double-leg takedowns, taking him down, wobbling him on the feet, almost finishing him in Round 3. Just a fantastic performance, a fantastic fight week – his star shot through the roof, and then he went too far.”
Buckley used his mic time with Bisping to call out [autotag]Conor McGregor[/autotag], who headlines UFC 303 against Michael Chandler. It’s safe to say Bisping thinks Buckley failed to capitalize on his big moment.
“Not the best callout,” Bisping said. “Listen, I like Joaquin Buckley. I’m not talking sh*t. But that fight with Conor McGregor is never going to happen, so you could say that potentially he wasted a callout. And then on top of that, then he went too far. He’s trying to be insulting and give McGregor a reason to want to fight him. He was calling his mom and grandma a ho, basically. I like a bit of sh*t talk, and then when he went that far, I’m like, ‘Oh sh*t, this is bad.’
“I think it was just in the moment with the adrenaline, with the big win, with his home crowd. He probably thought it was being funny, but I don’t think anyone particularly enjoyed that one. (He got) a great win over a tough opponent. The man’s got massive amounts of charisma, ridiculous knockout power, very athletic and he’s got a bright future. He should have called out somebody realistic, though.”
Buckley later acknowledged that the callout was unrealistic, and turned his attention to former title challenger Gilbert Burns.
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