Melvin Guillard vs. Ross Pearson booked for UFC Fight Night 29 in Manchester

A lightweight matchup and potential slugfest has been added to the UFC’s return to England.

UFC officials announced on Tuesday’s new edition of “UFC Tonight” that Melvin Guillard (31-12-2 MMA, 12-8 UFC) and Ross Pearson (15-6 MMA, 7-3 UFC) will meet at an Oct. 26 UFC Fight Night event scheduled for Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.

The contest serves as the co-main event of a card that sees Michael Bisping face Mark Munoz in the main event. The main card airs on FOX Sports 2 followig prelims that stream on Facebook.

Guillard looks to build on the strength of a “Knockout of the Night” win over Mac Danzig at July’s UFC on FOX 8 event. The much-needed result helped Guillard snap out of a 1-4 slump and once again showed the potential the 30-year-old slugger always packs in his back pocket.

A four-year UFC veteran, Pearson may be best known as the winner of “The Ultimate Fighter 9.” The Brit struggles to find a rhythm after his “TUF” victory and went 5-3 in his first eight UFC fights. In that stretch, he also made a trip to 145 pounds, where he earned a win over Junior Assuncao but lost to Cub Swanson. He then returned to lightweight, where he’s looked spectacular in wins over Ryan Couture and George Sotiropoulos.

For more on UFC Fight Night in Manchester, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Melvin Guillard)