Michael Bisping sees championship potential in Artem Vakhitov.
Vakhitov (3-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) earned a UFC contract when he finished Islem Masraf by first-round TKO Tuesday at Dana White’s Contender Series 75. UFC light heavyweight champion Alex Pereira helped convince Dana White to sign his ex-kickboxing rival Vakhitov, and the UFC CEO obliged.
With Vakhitov and Pereira splitting their two Glory Kickboxing appearances, Vakhitov hopes to earn a trilogy bout with “Poatan” in the UFC, and Bisping thinks it’s possible.
“I think he could do it. I think he’s got the potential,” Bisping said on his YouTube channel. “He’s got to work on the takedown defense. He’s got to get used to the little gloves. He’s got to get used to people with offbeat rhythms, because MMA strikers are a bit different to polished kickboxers.
“But if he can do that, if he can do the work and apply himself, I think he could have a very, very bright future and we could see that fight at some point down the line.”
Bisping expects Vakhitov to be pushed by the UFC into a fast rise just like Pereira was. It took Pereira only three UFC wins to earn his first title shot, where he knocked out his other ex-kickboxing rival Israel Adesanya to claim the middleweight title at UFC 281.
“It’s going to be interesting to see who they match him up with first,” Bisping said. “But if he goes on, let’s say, a four- or five-fight streak, where he goes out and he knocks people out, then of course there’s a big fight on our hands, and I’m sure Alex Pereira the whole time is going to be willing him on because he wants to get him back. He wants to make money.”
