Michael Bisping thinks Lerone Murphy is now the clear-cut No. 1 contender after UFC Fight Night 259.
In Saturday’s Noche UFC headliner, Diego Lopes (27-7 MMA, 6-2 UFC) knocked out Jean Silva (16-3 MMA, 5-1 UFC) in the second round at Frost Bank Arena in San Antonio, Texas. With Lopes losing to UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski in his fight prior, Bisping sees Murphy (17-0-1 MMA, 9-0-1 UFC) as the frontrunner for a title shot.
“If Jean Silva had done something massive, if he had knocked out Diego Lopes, if he had submitted him, if he had finished him, or even if he just won in any way, he might have just got the opportunity to fight Volkanovski before Lerone Murphy,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “So I think it’s clear as day now: Lerone Murphy will be fighting Alexander Volkanovski.”
Volkanovski didn’t rule out the possibility of rematching Lopes, and also mentioned Murphy, who’s coming off a spinning back elbow knockout of Aaron Pico at UFC 319. Bisping doesn’t see Lopes in the title picture just yet, and suggested his next opponent.
“Let’s have a quick look at the UFC rankings and see who he should fight next because it ain’t going to be for the belt because he lost last time out to Alexander Volkanovski,” Bisping said of Lopes. “There is one fight that stands out, and he just fought recently in Shanghai. He just got a win over Brian Ortega. That man’s name is Aljamain Sterling.”
