{"id":545678,"date":"2026-03-19T00:50:09","date_gmt":"2026-03-19T00:50:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/545678\/"},"modified":"2026-03-19T00:50:09","modified_gmt":"2026-03-19T00:50:09","slug":"michael-bisping-applauds-pereiras-exciting-deal-march-17","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/545678\/","title":{"rendered":"Michael Bisping Applauds Pereira’s Exciting Deal March 17"},"content":{"rendered":"

Michael Bisping <\/a>will be making the trek down to Washington, DC in under three months\u2019 time for the UFC Freedom 250<\/a> event on The White House grounds. The six-fight card will be headlined by two title fights at the top of the bill, including a contest at heavyweight in the evening\u2019s co-main attraction<\/p>\n

With permanent UFC Heavyweight Champion Tom Aspinall still out for the time being, Alex Pereira<\/a>, (13-3 MMA, 10-2 UFC,) who\u2019s already won UFC titles in both the middleweight and light heavyweight divisions, along with the middleweight and light heavyweight championships in GLORY Kickboxing, will make a run at a third UFC title in June. Ciryl Gane (13-2, 1 NC MMA, 10-2, 1 NC UFC) serves as Pereira\u2019s opposition.<\/p>\n

Pereira will have some added motivation to do well in the June 14 fight in Washington, as he recently came to terms with the UFC on a new deal. This contract comes at a time when the subject of compensation for competitors has become a controversial topic in MMA circles.<\/p>\n

Michael Bisping Opens Up on Pereira\u2019s New Deal on YouTube<\/p>\n

While certain fighters have been short-changed when it comes to finances, Alex Pereira won\u2019t be in that category. On St. Patrick\u2019s Day, Michael Bisping discussed \u201cPoatan\u2019s\u201d new deal with the UFC<\/a> on his YouTube channel.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe just signed, Pereira, \u2018Poatan,\u2019 one of the hardest-hitting guys the sport\u2019s ever seen, he just signed a lifetime deal with the UFC,\u201d Michael Bisping began. \u201cHe did an interview with Ariel Helwani and he went into all the details: He has signed an eight-fight deal, and I know I said \u2018lifetime contract.\u2019 It\u2019s not a lifetime contract, but that\u2019s as good as a lifetime!\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

Michael Bisping acknowledged that Alex Pereira\u2019s new deal will be one that will, in all probability, carry him into his retirement as a competitor.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe man is 38 years old, he signed an eight-fight deal,\u201d he said. \u201cThat means that he ain\u2019t fighting anywhere else, and let me tell you, he is over the moon with the deal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bisping Guesstimates on Pereira\u2019s Wages in New Deal<\/p>\n

While Michael Bisping admitted that the only people who definitively know how much money Alex Pereira was making in his previous contract were those closest to the situation, he did allow himself a chance to try and ballpark the figures.<\/p>\n

\u201cFirst off, congratulations,\u201d he continued. \u201cI don\u2019t know the numbers involved. Nobody does. I assume he was making somewhere around $3, $3.5, $4 million per fight. This new deal, which probably does lock him up for the rest of his combat sports life, is probably going to be around the $5, $6 million range. Who knows? I\u2019m guessing, I\u2019m spit-balling, but that would not surprise me.\u201d<\/p>\n

As previously mentioned, wages for fighters has become a hot-button issue in the sport, with some competitors, such as Ronda Rousey, speaking out publicly on the matter.<\/a> In his video, Michael Bisping mentioned that Pereira is only one of the fighters in the upper-echelon of MMA to be given lucrative deals to set foot inside the cage.<\/p>\n

\u201cI know a lot of people have been talking (expletive deleted) about the UFC,\u201d he said. \u201cFunnily enough, the champs, the people at the top of the sport, the best in the planet and in the division, the guys that drive the sport, they\u2019re not complaining, and I wasn\u2019t back in my day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Michael Bisping on Alex Pereira vs. Ciryl Gane<\/p>\n

Pereira is due to make the first walk to the fabled Octagon in June to fight Gane for the UFC Interim Heavyweight Championship on The White House grounds in Washington. Michael Bisping talked about the June 14 co-main event.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe old clich\u00e9 in combat sports is \u2018I don\u2019t want to look past my opponent because I\u2019m focused on Ciryl Gane\u2019, and he should be,\u201d he said. \u201cThat\u2019s a tough fight but it\u2019s a very winnable fight. It\u2019s a very fun, compelling matchup. A lot of people came out talking (censored) to me because I said \u2018It might be a better matchup than Jon Jones.\u2019<\/p>\n

From there, \u201cThe Count\u201d explained the rationale behind his earlier comments.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt will be a striking affair,\u201d Michael Bisping said. \u201cPeople didn\u2019t love the BMF [contest] because Charles Oliveira dominated the fight on the ground, and more than likely, I\u2019m not being disrespectful to Pereira, you\u2019ve got to think that\u2019s what Jon Jones would do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Final Thoughts<\/p>\n

Michael Bisping\u2019s analysis of Alex Pereira\u2019s new deal and upcoming fight with Gane are most accurate. Fighters who are main-event caliber bring the most eyes to the screen on the night of the event. Alex Pereira and Ciryl Gane fit the bill perfectly.<\/p>\n

Main-event caliber fighters like Alex Pereira should be paid as such. Although there\u2019s no way of actually knowing if Bisping\u2019s ballpark figures are the actual numbers, Pereira will likely be counting up the dough for the rest of his days in the sport.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

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