Michael Bisping's remarkable bravery was not rewarded on Saturday.
Less than three weeks after waking up from a Georges St-Pierre rear naked choke to learn that he was no longer the UFC middleweight champion, Bisping walked to the Octagon yet again with Blur blaring behind him.
When Kelvin Gastelum required a new opponent for the UFC Shanghai main event after Anderson Silva failed a drugs test, 'The Count' proved yet again what kind of man he is as he picked up the phone and demanded the fight.
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But mixed martial arts is an unforgiving sport and courage is not always rewarded. Bisping knows that better than anybody.
Although credit to the Manchester middleweight, he was enjoying some success on the feet early on and some of his pinpoint right hooks snapped Gastelum's head back.
But with 4oz. gloves and a heavy-hitter like Gastelum, all it takes is one clean shot to turn someone's lights out.
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As a whipping Bisping right hook whizzed past its target, Gastelum uncoiled and uncorked a gorgeous left hand directly after a short right to fold the Brit up.
Some ruthless ground-and-pound forced referee Marc Goddard to call an end to proceedings and deliver back-to-back defeats for the first time in Bisping's career.
But don't think for a second that the 38-year-old is going to hang up his gloves on the back of that performance.
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The TUF 3 winner is still targeting the UFC's return to London next March as the event to host his retirement fight.
"Kelvin's a great guy but, unfortunately, it's going to take a bigger pile of shit than him to get rid of me," Bisping said.
"Ladies and gentlemen, thank you all for being here. Congratulations to Kelvin."
We are definitely going to miss Bisping when he's gone!
