“He’s at least 200 pounds” - Michael Bisping raises red flags over “thick” Conor McGregor announcing UFC return at middleweight

Michael Bisping does not seem entirely confident that the weight gain for Conor McGregor will be beneficial to him in his return to the cage.

McGregor announced a June 29th return to the octagon to take on Michael Chandler. The opponent was not a surprise as both coached The Ultimate Fighter opposite each other. But McGregor stating it would be a middleweight bout caught the attention of many.

Speaking to his co-host Anthony Smith on his podcast Believe You Me, in a transcription courtesy of MMA Fighting, Michael Bisping stated,

"No wonder it’s 185 because Conor McGregor’s arm—I only saw his arm—but it looked a little flabby gabby. I thought so. It looks thick, I’m not hating, but he looks a little soft there. He’s definitely bigger. Brendan Loughnane… he said he’s doing a little training with him out in Dubai, he said, ‘Yeah, he’s big. He’s at least 200 pounds.'"

Check out the post on Bisping discussing McGregor eyeing 185 pounds below:

Michael Bisping and his UFC middleweight legacy

When it comes to offering insights on the 185-pound division, who better than a former champion in the weight category like Michael Bisping?

'The Count' had some early career forays at heavyweight and middleweight but spent a good amount of his early years at 205 pounds almost exclusively. Following his first MMA defeat to eventual UFC light heavyweight champion Rashad Evans at UFC 78, Michael Bisping dropped to 185 pounds and fought there for the rest of his career.

He went through stretches of notching several impressive wins in succession but sustained a loss at a very key juncture where he had to go back to the drawing board.

The UK native turned things around when he halted Luke Rockhold at UFC 199 via first-round knockout. He became middleweight champion in the process in what was one of the greatest underdog victories the sport has ever seen.

Bisping went on to defend the title in a points win over Dan Henderson at UFC 204 to avenge arguably his most memorable loss. He then lost his hold on the gold to Georges St-Pierre at UFC 217 before retiring from competition following a first-round KO loss to Kelvin Gastelum a few weeks after dropping the title.