Michael Bisping Vs. Mark Munoz Set For UFC Event In England

Michael Bisping and Mark Munoz have verbally agreed to a fight in Manchester, England, this fall.

The fight was booked on Friday and will take place on October 26, a little over four years since Bisping’s last fight in his hometown. The last time the 34-year-old fought in the Octagon in Manchester was at UFC 105, when he beat Denis Kang by TKO at 4:24 in the second round. The bout earned Fight of the Night honors, Bisping’s second, with the first taking place two years earlier — also in Manchester — at UFC 70 against Elvis Sinosic.

In the early years of his UFC career, Bisping fought regularly in England as the promotion expanded into the country after he won The Ultimate Fighter in 2006 — the first non-American to do so.

The bout between Bisping and 35-year-old Munoz is expected to be a five-round main event.

Munoz (13-3) is coming off of a unanimous decision victory over Tim Boetsch at UFC 162 last Saturday. The last time Munoz fought in England, he defeated Chris Leben by TKO at UFC 138 on November 5, 2011. In between those two fights, Munoz fought new middleweight champion Chris Weidman at UFC on Fuel TV: Munoz vs. Weidman on July 11, 2012, and lost by KO at 1:37 in the second round, snapping a four-fight win streak. He suffered a broken foot and an injured elbow during the fight, which kept him sidelined for the remainder of 2012, and the first half of 2013.

Bisping (24-5) is also coming off of a win, defeating lan Belcher by technical decision at UFC 159 in April. He’s gone 2-2 in his last four fights, suffering losses to Chael Sonnen and Vitor Belfort at UFC on Fox: Evans vs. Davis on January 28, 2012, and UFC on FX: Belfort vs. Bisping on January 19, 2013. At UFC 152 on September 22, 2012, he defeated recently-retired Brian Stann by unanimous decision.

So far, Bisping vs. Munoz is the only bout announced for this card.

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[Pictured: Mark Munoz / Utter Truth / Flickr]