Michael Bisping/Dan Henderson II set for UFC 204

A rematch seven years in the making is finally happening. At UFC 204 on October 8th in Manchester, England, Dan Henderson (32-14) will fight Michael Bisping (29-7) for the UFC Middleweight Title. According to MMA Fighting, the bout has been verbally agreed upon between the two fighters.

Bisping and Henderson last faced off at UFC 100, a few months after both were coaches in season 9 of The Ultimate Fighter. Henderson knocked out Bisping in the second round with a vicious shot to the face. Since then, both have been on a very interesting road in the UFC; Bisping going 12-5 and Henderson going 7-7.

httpss://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uh9l58GUZNc

When the two face off, it won’t just be for bragging rights. The right to face off for a title is an honor for both fighters, and both will be up for the challenge. For Bisping, it is a chance for the current champion to prove he is worthy after finally winning a UFC championship against Luke Rockhold at UFC 199. For Henderson, it is a chance for the legendary fighter to finally win the big one in the UFC.

With the PPV in England, there are a lot of interesting factors in play. First, Manchester is Bisping’s home turf, which means the crowd may try to mess with Henderson’s head. It will be interesting to see if Henderson can block out all distractions in a hostile environment.

Another factor would be the time change, according to MMA Fighting. In order to accommodate the UFC fans in North America and abroad, the main event will most likely be at 5am. That is an unfortunate result of the time difference from England to the US. WWE has had good numbers when dealing with the same issue (ex: Beast in the East in Japan) so this won’t necessarily be a huge problem. It will be interesting to see how passionate fans will respond to this small “dilemma”.

Minus some controversies, 2016 has been a great year for the UFC. Bisping vs Henderson II in Manchester will look to continue the company’s momentum. I can’t wait for these two to duke it out once again. If we are lucky, there may be a chance these two can fight a few more times before their careers end. Now that would be a treat.