UFC Shanghai preview: Bisping aims to exorcise demons on short notice

Not two weeks ago, Michael Bisping brought a whole new meaning to getting back in the saddle.

Days after Georges St-Pierre relieved him of his middleweight crown at UFC 217, the now-former champ jumped at the opportunity to atone for a rare submission loss in a headlining dance with Kelvin Gastelum on a three-week turnaround at Saturday's UFC Fight Night 122 in Shanghai.

As he's repeated in the lead-up to a booking spawned by Anderson Silva's recent flagging by the USADA, the self-proclaimed "Left Hook Larry" has had a rough go of moving on from a stoppage loss that began with, of all things, a left hook, and aims to get back in the win column before calling it a career in his native England on the UFC's March show in London.

The last time he traveled to China on UFC business, the Brit - as he succinctly put it - "beat the piss" out of former Strikeforce champion Cung Le:

Gastelum will look to bounce back from a submission loss of his own at Mercedes Benz Arena - one suffered at Chris Weidman's hands this past July at UFC on FOX 25.

Despite his rather diminutive frame and recent loss to Weidman, the "TUF 17" winner appears to have found a home at middleweight after seeing an otherwise solid run at welterweight tarnished by an acrimonious relationship with the scale. The 26-year-old returned to 185 pounds with a bang last December at UFC 206 when he put Tim Kennedy out to pasture by third-round TKO, before dispatching Vitor Belfort in under a round in Brazil this past March - a victory later overturned to a no-contest when Gastelum tested positive for marijuana in the spring.

Simply put, Gastelum is a legitimate threat in a division Bisping called his purview up until just a few moons ago, and between his designs on claiming gold and the Brit's on gaining some peace of mind, Mercedes Benz Arena should be in for a first-rate main event.

Welcome to the Terrordome

It's far from uncommon to see at least a couple fighters make their first walk to the Octagon on your average fight night, and Saturday's bill is no exception.

A whopping 10 newcomers will compete in the UFC's maiden voyage to mainland China, with seven of them vying for a victory on home soil. Leading the charge is featherweight Wang Guan, who meets Alex Caceres on the main card after inking a deal with the promotion in February.

The 31-year-old debuts on a four-fight win streak with a professional record of 16-1-1, while Caceres most recently snapped a two-fight skid with a second-round TKO of Rolando Dy at UFC Fight Night 111, where Guan had been expected to undergo his promotional initiation.

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In the main card's welterweight curtain-jerker, KO artist Muslim Salikhov meets the heavy-handed Alex Garcia. The self-proclaimed "King of Kung Fu" has won all but one of 13 pro bouts - including 10 victories by knockout - and will look to extend his win streak to 11 against Garcia, a Tristar member aiming to atone for a June decision loss to Tim Means.

Muay Thai banger Sheymon Moraes rounds out the card's trio of tantalizing talents, as he meets fellow featherweight prospect Zabit Magomedsharipov in the featured preliminary bout. The 27-year-old Moraes has gotten his hand raised in all but one of 10 pro contests, and once challenged for World Series of Fighting's bantamweight title before parting ways with the since-revamped outfit earlier this year.

In a gargantuan forward stride for India's MMA scene, featherweight Bharat Kandare will mark the country's first native son to compete in the UFC when he meets Yadong Song on Saturday's show.

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