Munoz vs. Bisping confirmed for Oct. 26 UFC Fight Night event in Manchester

A previously reported middleweight headliner between Michael Bisping (24-5 MMA, 14-5 UFC) and Mark Munoz (13-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) is now official for an Oct. 26 UFC event.

MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) first reported the likely bout this past month, though a UFC official subsequently said the event wasn’t set and that the organization was “working hard” to finalize it. Today, though, the UFC finally made it official.

The event is expected to be part of the UFC Fight Night event series, possible UFC Fight Night 29, with a main card on the soon-to-launch FOX Sports 2 and prelims on Facebook.

No other fights have been announced the card, which takes place at Manchester Arena

Bisping was recently on the cusp of a long-awaited title shot before a January loss to Vitor Belfort ruined his chances. However, the English fighter recently rebounded with a technical decision win over Alan Belcher. With two wins his past three fights and a 6-2 mark since early 2010, “The Ultimate Fighter 3? winner remains a top contender at 185 pounds.

Meanwhile, Munoz returns after earning a lopsided decision win over Tim Boetsch at UFC 162. It was Munoz’s first fight in a year after battling through both injury and depression following a loss to Chris Weidman in 2012. Still, Munoz is 5-1 in his past six fights, and with Anderson Silva‘s recent loss, the UFC 185-pound division is now wide open.

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

(Pictured: Mark Munoz)