"It was 5.30 a.m. in the morning" - Hall of Famer looks back at fighting in Manchester as UFC 304 is made official

The UFC announced its return to the United Kingdom for the upcoming pay-per-view event, UFC 304, on July 27, 2024. It will take place in the newly-opened Co-Op Live arena in Manchester, England.

The last time the UFC visited Manchester was on October 8, 2016 for UFC 204. The headliner at the Manchester Arena was a middleweight title clash between Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson.

Bisping reminisced over his UFC 204 main event fight against Henderson in his latest post on Instagram. He mentioned the early fight times and also highlighted the energy of the crowd. The 45-year-old wrote:

"Ufc Manchester has been announced. Here's the last time I fought there. It was 5.30am in the morning, just like it will be for the main event in July, that said the energy and the passion from the fans was still unbelievable. Amazing memories. Good luck to all the fighters and I'm proud that after all this time I'll still be involved while serving as commentator for the event."

Bisping also confirmed that he will be one of the commentators at UFC 304.

At UFC 204, Bisping successfully defended his title against Henderson via unanimous decision after a hard-fought five rounds. It remains the only title defense of his UFC career.

Check out Michael Bisping's post on Instagram below:

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Fans react to Michael Bisping's throwback post after the announcement of UFC 304

Fans in the comments of Michael Bisping's Instagram post were critical of the UFC's decision to match UFC 304's timings with the United States prime time slot yet again.

"Those half 5 fights in the uk are ridiculous. Pandering for the American audience."

Some even called for Bisping to take a hard stand against it despite his association to the UFC as a commentator.

"Mike, please don’t be a company man with this. There is absolutely no legitimate excuse for UK fans to have to stay up until 6am for a fight on home soil. It’s a terrible decision for the UFC."

Fans also pointed out the promotions' hypocrisy with the events held in other countries in the world and questioned why the fans in the United Kingdom should suffer.

Check out the fans' reactions and comments on UFC 304 in the screenshots below:

Fans react to Michael Bisping's post on UFC 204. [via Instagram]