Vitor Belfort Taunts Michael Bisping for Declining Bout at UFC Fight Night in London

Vitor Belfort didn’t get to have his retirement bout at UFC Fight Night 124 in St. Louis on Sunday, and it looks like it won’t came against Michael Bisping in London, either.

On his "Believe You Me” podcast, Bisping vehemently denied any interest in a possible matchup with “The Phenom” at UFC Fight Night 127, which takes place at the O2 Arena in London on March 17. The card does not yet have a main event, and the Englishman has shown interest in having his final UFC bout on home soil — just not against Belfort.

“I’m not fighting Vitor Belfort in London,” Bisping said. “I’m not fighting Vitor Belfort in London. I am not fighting Vitor Belfort in London. 100 percent, I’m not fighting him. Zero percent chance.”

Belfort ripped the former middleweight champion for turning down the fight in an Instagram post. The two men initially squared off at UFC on FX 7, when Belfort dispatched Bisping with a head kick and punches 1:27 into the second round. At the time, Belfort was the beneficiary of testosterone replacement therapy, which had not yet been banned in the UFC. Bisping suffered a detached retina during their fight.

“What a shame [Michael Bisping] The [UFC] just informed me that you have declined the fight. I understand you are scared. The images above pretty much explain it all…,” Belfort wrote in a caption of post featuring images from their fight in January 2013.


 “So stop pretending that you are tough and just admit that you are afraid. And I thought you were man enough to step up in the octagon with me again, my mistake... unfortunately looks like we will not be delivering to the fans the fight they want to see... Happy retirement, you must be feeling amazing leaving the sport thru the back door... To be a legend is not [for] everyone!”

Bisping has not been shy about expressing his distaste for Belfort, but “The Count” doesn’t want his final act to be overshadowed by a bitter rivalry with another fighter.

“For me, the main reason is I don’t like the guy and I just don’t want to be associated with him and I know if we were to fight, it would just turn into a typical Michael Bisping performance of trash talk and all this type of thing at the weigh-ins and the press conference and all that stuff,” Bisping said. “I’d be talking s—t and I don’t want to do that.

“This is my — if I fight in London — it’s my last ever fight, and I want to handle myself the way I handled myself the majority of the time,” he continued. “I don’t want it to be some bitter rivalry with a guy that has caused me lasting disfigurement and that I’m emotionally charged up against. I’d rather go out there, put my best foot forward, enjoy the moment, fight somebody that I respect, fight somebody that’s gonna be a challenge but I have a lot of respect for, and do it in a classy way.”

What a shame @mikebisping !!! @ufc just informed me that you have declined the fight. I understand you are scared. The images above pretty much explain it all... So stop pretending that you are tough and just admit that you are afraid. And I thought you were man enough to step up in the octagon with me again, my mistake... unfortunately looks like we will not be delivering to the fans the fight they want to see... Happy retirement, you must be feeling amazing leaving the sport thru the back door... To be a legend is not to everyone! Que vergonha @mikebisping !!! O @ufc acabou de me dizer q vc recusou a luta. Eu entendo que vc está com medo. As imagens acima meio que explicam tudo... Então para de fingir que é durão e admite que está com medo. E eu pensei que fosse homem suficiente para subir no octógono comigo outra vez, me enganei... Infelizmente parece que não iremos dar aos fãs a luta que eles querem... Feliz aposentadoria, vc deve estar muito feliz por deixar o esporte pela porta dos fundos... Se tornar uma lenda, realmente não é para qualquer um.. #teambelfort

A post shared by Vitor "The Phenom" Belfort (@vitorbelfort) on Jan 17, 2018 at 6:00am PST