Michael Bisping Takes Split Decision Over Thales Leites in UFC Fight Night 72 Main Event

Michael Bisping was built for the close fight.

Bisping tied Anderson Silva for third place on the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s career wins list with a split decision over Nova Uniao’s Thales Leites in the UFC Fight Night 72 headliner on Saturday at the SSE Hydro Arena in Glasgow, Scotland. Two of the three cageside judges cast scorecards in Bisping’s favor, awarding him 49-46 and 48-47 marks; a third scored it 48-47 for Leites, who saw his eight-fight winning streak snapped.

Excellent conditioning, incessant lateral movement and busy hands buoyed Bisping (27-7, 17-7 UFC), who mixed leg and body kicks with multi-punch combinations to the head. Leites (25-5, 10-4 UFC) opened a brief window…