Bisping vs. St-Pierre, Garbrandt vs. Dillashaw official for UFC 217

It looks like UFC 217 will be one of the biggest cards of the year.

As the promotion makes its return to Madison Square Garden in New York, Michael Bisping will put his middleweight title on the line against Georges St-Pierre while Cody Garbrandt makes his highly anticipated return to action against former teammate T.J. Dillashaw.

Both fights were confirmed by UFC officials on Wednesday night.

Bisping and St-Pierre have long been rumored to meet after the fight was first announced all the way back in March, but now it’s finally official. Bisping put ink to paper on his contract this week following St-Pierre doing the same a few days ago.

For St-Pierre, this will serve as his first fight back in action in nearly four years as he moves to the middleweight division for the first time as well after reigning as the nine-time defending welterweight champion in his previous stint with the UFC.

The bantamweight title will also go up for grabs at UFC 217 when Garbrandt faces Dillashaw in a grudge match for the ages.

Garbrandt and Dillashaw were once teammates at Team Alpha Male in Sacramento but now they meet as bitter rivals following a heated season coaching against each other on “The Ultimate Fighter”.  They were originally scheduled to meet in July, but Garbrandt suffered a back injury that forced him out of the contest.

Now Garbrandt and Dillashaw will face off under the bright lights in New York as the UFC lands at historic Madison Square Garden for the second year in a row.