UFC middleweight Mark Munoz has reportedly injured his arm while training and is out of his upcoming UFC on FOX 2 bout versus Chael Sonnen (26-11-1) in their No. 1 contender bout.
Stepping in for ‘The Filipino Wrecking Machine’ will be main card fighter Michael ‘The Count’ Bisping (22-3).
UFC president Dana White announced the news this evening via Twitter (@danawhite), confirming that Sonnen and Bisping would be fighting for the next middleweight challenger position.
– Munoz is injured and out of the FOX fight! Now it’s Chael Sonnen vs Mike Bisping jan 28th and the winner will fight Anderson for the title.
Bisping had been scheduled to face Demian Maia on the main card of the FOX show, now with Bisping facing Sonnen it appears that Maia has been left out in the cold.
UFC on Fox: Evans vs. Davis (aka UFC on Fox 2) is scheduled to take place on January 28, 2012 at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. The event features another import bout in the light heavyweight division as Rashad Evans takes on Phil Davis, with ‘Suga’ fighting for a No. 1 contender position.
Sonnen has already fought for the UFC 185-lbs title once, losing to champ Anderson Silva in August 2010 at UFC 117. After dominating four-and-a-half rounds, Sonnen was submitted by ‘The Spider’ in the fifth round via triangle choke. Sonnen would undergo a suspension for a positive steroid test and would return last October to defeat Brian Stann at UFC 136.
Bisping has won four in a row and is coming off a third round TKO win over TUF 14 opposing coach Jason ‘Mayhem’ Miller at the TUF 14 Finale. ‘The Count’ has been calling for a shot at Silva for some time now, and had been facing Maia for a possible contender position after the winner of Sonnen vs. Munoz faced the champ. Now he’ll get his chance, but faces a tough wrestler on little notice after training for a Jiu-Jitsu fighter for months.