5 Reasons Jorge Rivera Could Beat Michael Bisping

If you didn’t know who Jorge Rivera was before the weeks leading up to UFC 127, you most likely know now. With a series of hilarious internet videos, Rivera has dominated the pre-fight verbal war between himself and his impending opponent Michael Bisping. It seems as if Bisping has met his match when it comes to trash talking, but what about when the fight actually happens? Here’s my answer to just that: another entry into my “Five Reasons Why” series. First up is five reasons why Jorge Rivera could beat Michael Bisping, with the reverse soon to follow. Let’s dive right in.

5. Rivera is coming off of two straight TKO victories, while Bisping hasn’t finished anyone in over a year.

Rivera’s last two fights have all ended with his opponents looking up at the lights, and that’s a huge confidence booster as Rivera heads into his fight with Bisping. Meanwhile, Bisping hasn’t stopped anyone since he beat Denis Kang back in November 2009. Bisping’s last three fights have all went to a decision, one of which he lost. This paints a pretty clear picture: Rivera’s killer instinct is still very much intact, Bisping’s appears to be faltering.

4. Jorge Rivera is in the middle of the biggest comeback of his career.

Rivera has never looked quite so good in the Octagon. He’s won three fights in a row before, but he’s never won three straight in the UFC. And Rivera’s last victory was a big win over former UFC Middleweight Championship challenger Nate Quarry. In fact, Rivera basically TKO’d Quarry into retirement, although that remains unconfirmed. Rivera is hungry, motivated, and winning like he’s never won before. His confidence is the highest it’s been in years, and he’ll need that to beat Bisping.

3. Jorge Rivera likes to knock people out.

Rivera has twelve wins by (T)KO, and he always swings with both power and authority. Against Wanderlei Silva, Michael Bisping was in serious danger of being knocked out at least once during their fight. And then of course there was the famous loss to Dan Henderson, a knockout loss so brutal that many cynics continue to hold it over Bisping and his fans to this day. If Rivera can catch Bisping, he’s definitely got a shot at finishing “The Count”.

2. Jorge Rivera has a lot of experience.

While Rivera only has two more professional MMA fights than Bisping, this point should still be made. Rivera’s UFC debut came almost three years before Bisping’s, Rivera also debuted as a professional MMA star close to three years before “The Count”. In that time, Rivera has faced humbling defeats and major victories. He’s been kicked out and fought his way back into the UFC several times. Jorge Rivera has a ton of experience, and he’ll need all of it in order to best Bisping.

And the number one reason why I think Jorge Rivera could beat Michael Bisping is because…

1. Jorge Rivera is under Michael Bisping’s skin.

Whenever someone truly gets under Michael Bisping’s skin, he loses. Dan Henderson is the clearest example of this: “Hendo” was completely unaffected by Bisping’s constant trash-talk, and ironically enough, not being able to get under Henderson’s skin allowed Henderson to get under Bisping’s. In all the pre-fight interviews Bisping has had leading up to this fight, I really get the feeling that Rivera is winning the psychological warfare. If one of the masters of trash talk can only offer up “dork” and “nerd” as a rebuttal, you know something is up. If Michael Bisping makes a mistake, Rivera will be ready to capitalize on it. And Bisping tends to make mistakes when a fighter gets under his skin.

And that’s what I think, fans and friends. Stay tuned for the follow-up post, but for now, what’s your take on this fight?