Luke Rockhold, Sean Strickland verbally agree to fight at UFC 268

Pending bout finalization, former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold will return to the cage for the first time in more than two years this November.

Verbally agreed upon for Nov. 6 at UFC 268, Rockhold (16-5 MMA, 9-4 UFC) will face off against surging contender Sean Strickland. While the event was originally targeted for Madison Square Garden in New York, new state COVID-19 guidelines have clouded the situation.

Two people with knowledge of the matchup confirmed the targeted booking to MMA Junkie on Wednesday but asked to remain anonymous since the promotion has yet to make an official announcement. TSN was first to report the targeted booking a day after UFC president Dana White revealed the fight was being discussed.

Rockhold, 36, announced in August 2020 his plans to continue MMA competition after a yearlong hiatus. However, matchmaking was an issue and Rockhold never officially had a fight on the books.

Since he lost his UFC middleweight title to Michael Bisping at UFC 199 in June 2016, Rockhold has gone 1-2. His most recent outing came at UFC 239 in July 2019, when he was knocked out by future and current light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz. The bout was a one-off at 205 pounds for Rockhold, who will return to middleweight to face Strickland.

The 30-year-old Strickland (24-3 MMA, 11-3 UFC) rides a five-fight winning streak into the matchup. His most recent victory took place this past Saturday at UFC on ESPN 28 when he defeated Uriah Hall via dominant unanimous decision in his first five-round main event with the promotion.

With the addition, the UFC 268 lineup includes:

• Champ Kamaru Usman vs. Colby Covington – for welterweight title
• Michael Chandler vs. Justin Gaethje
• Luke Rockhold vs. Sean Strickland