UFC President Dana White confirmed Tuesday that Chael Sonnen, the company’s king of trash-talking, has a new opponent for the upcoming UFC on FOX event.
And it is one with a loud mouth of his own.
With Sonnen’s originally-scheduled opponent Mark Munoz out due to injury, Michael Bisping will step in for the match with Chael. The winner becomes the number one contender for Anderson Silva’s Middleweight Championship.
Given their big personalities and some occasional verbal trading in the past, many mixed martial arts fans have long been clamoring for the bout, and there was significant surprise when UFC initially booked them in separate matches on the January 28 show. Prior to Munoz’s injury, Chael was to face the heavy-handed All-American wrestler, while Bisping was booked on the card in a bout with Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace Demian Maia.
Maia’s status for the show, which has been promoted heavily as a triple-header, was not immediately clear. Phil Davis battles Rashad Evans in the show’s main event.
Update: Demian Maia will fight Chris Weidman