Michael Bisping returning at UFC Fight Night 127? Think again.
The former UFC middleweight champion said Tuesday that despite previous reports, he will not be fighting on the upcoming London, England card, which is less than two months away.
“Don’t buy tickets to see me fight in London,” Bisping wrote. “I’m not fighting. Just spoke with ufc.”
MMAFighting.com’s Ariel Helwani reported last weekend that a bout between Bisping and former light heavyweight champ Rashad Evans was being discussed as the UFC Fight Night 127 headliner. It isn’t yet clear why that matchup fell through.
Before that, a rematch between Bisping and Vitor Belfort was also targeted for the event. The UFC offered the bout to both competitors, but “The Count” turned it down for multiple reasons.
As Helwani pointed out on Twitter, UFC Fight Night 127 tickets go on sale Wednesday. If a headliner is not booked before then, the London card will mark the third UFC event in 2018 to have tickets go on sale without a main event scheduled.
The other two were the first card of the year, UFC Fight Night: Stephens vs. Choi in St. Louis, and Orlando’s UFC on FOX 28, which takes place in February.
UFC Fight Night 127 takes place March 17 at O2 Arena. The highest-profile bout currently booked for the event is a light heavyweight rematch between Jimi Manuwa and Jan Blachowicz. The entire card streams live on UFC Fight Pass.