UFC Fight Night 55 results recap: Luke Rockhold vs Michael Bisping fight review and analysis

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) middleweights Luke Rockhold and Michael Bisping attempted to interject their names into the title picture last night (Nov. 7, 2014) at UFC Fight Night 55 inside Allphones Arena in Sydney, Australia.

Despite his knockout loss to Vitor Belfort, Rockhold has very much looked the part of a title contender. Since that loss, he dismantled both Costa Philippou and Tim Boestch within one round. He then did his best to add Bisping's name to that list.

Prior to last night, Bisping had recovered well from a disappointing loss to Tim Kennedy with a brutal beating of Cung Le. Though the odds of him ever receiving his long desired title shot seemed slim, Bisping was given a hell of an opportunity with this match up against the former Strikeforce kingpin.

Sadly, the Englishman once again stumbled against truly elite competition.

For about two minutes, Rockhold did not throw a single strike. He simply stalked "The Count." Bisping attempted to move in and close range with jabs, straights, and landed the occasional leg kick. During this time, an accidental headbutt caused Bisping's eye to open up when Rockhold looked for the clinch.

Then, Rockhold slowly began turning up his intensity. Utilizing the right hook and his vicious left kick to the body and legs, Rockhold started to open up. With about a minute left, Bisping was still throwing a fairly high volume of strikes, but the American Kickboxing Acadamy-trained fighter was in complete control.

I'm honestly not sure if Bisping landed a single clean punch in five minutes of trying.

Rockhold entered the next round with the same intensity. After countering an attempted flurry from Bisping with a straight left, he walked the Brit towards the cage. First, Rockhold landed a question mark quick with his lead leg, slapping his foot across Bisping's face.

Then, his left high kick connected.

Bisping -- not wanting to eat another painful body kick -- dropped his hands just a bit, allowing the kick to skim over his skull. Still, it sent him tumbling to the mat, and Rockhold followed him with a series of punches. As Bisping attempted to return to his feet, Rockhold grabbed his neck in a guillotine, rolled Bisping into mount, and finished with one arm.

That was about as dominant as a performance can be. Once Rockhold found his range, his efficiency is picking apart Bisping was actually a bit shocking. The Californian may not utilize a ton of techniques on the feet, but he's undoubtedly an expert with his weapons.

It also helped that Rockhold looked a full weight class bigger than "The Count." Bisping, who found success in the light heavyweight division in the past, was dwarfed by Rockhold, yet his size does not seem to have a negative effect on his conditioning.

Finally, Rockhold's finishing instincts were excellent. Before Bisping had fully fallen to the mat, Rockhold was already attempting to land a powerful punch. Then, he latched onto Bisping's neck when it seemed the Englishman might actually get back to his feet and possibly recover, smoothly becoming the first fighter to submit Michael Bisping.

After such an impressive performance, Rockhold deserves one of two things. Either give him the next title shot at the winner of Weidman-Belfort, or put him in a rematch with "Jacare" Souza for the number one contender's spot.

In all honesty, it's difficult to imagine a situation in which Bisping wins this fight. He was too severely out-gunned, and though he tried valiantly to land strikes, never accomplished much of anything.

There's really no constructive criticism to give here: Bisping simply doesn't have the tools necessary to win this bout.

After the bout, Bisping declared that he's "going nowhere," which is true in a couple of ways. On the positive side, Bisping should still have plenty of time left in the UFC, as he's a big name with a supportive following that can still defeat the vast majority of the middleweight division in an entertaining fashion.

On the other hand, Bisping is also not going upwards in the division, as this must be his last opportunity. In his last three bouts against potential title contenders, Bisping has been head kicked, thoroughly dominated on the ground, and then head kicked and submitted.

For his next bout, expect Bisping to get a fighter like Brad Tavares or Tim Boestch. Both are solid fighters who deserve their spot on the rankings, but Bisping will be the favorite over either.

At UFC Fight Night 55, Luke Rockhold demolished Michael Bisping. Can the Californian make his way to UFC gold?

For complete UFC Fight Night 55 "Rockhold vs Bisping" results and play-by-play click HERE.