THE CANADIAN PRESS

LONDON -- It's been a card ravaged by injuries and withdrawals, with UFC UK president Marshall Zelaznik noting Thursday that four of the six fighters sitting at the podium were late additions to UFC 85.

"UFC 85: Bedlam perhaps is one of the best-titled shows in our history," Zelaznik said wryly.

The UFC executive made a special point of thanking Jason (Dooms) Day of Lethbridge, Alta., who stepped up just four weeks ago to meet English middleweight Michael (The Count) Bisping after Chris (The Crippler) Leben found his training camp disturbed by a small matter of jail time arising from a parole violation.

Superstar Chuck (The Iceman) Liddell was supposed to headline Saturday's card against Rashad Evans at the Millennium Dome but was forced out in mid-April with a torn hamstring.

"We had 12 tickets turned in for a refund," Zelaznik said in an interview after the pre-fight news conference Thursday. "And at the time we had probably over 11,000 seats sold when Chuck comes out. ... I think a lot of people just want to see the (UFC) show."

Saturday marks the UFC's fifth card in England since UFC 70 in Manchester, with more than 65,000 total seats sold.

The UFC subsequently bolstered the UFC 85 card by slotting former welterweight champion Matt Hughes into the main event against Brazilian young gun Thiago Alves and adding local favourite Bisping.

Matchmaker Joe Silva was forced to juggle some more, however with the loss of light-heavyweight James (The Sandman) Irvin (broken foot), English heavyweight Neil Wain (broke nose) and Japanese welterweight Ryo Chonan (rib). Evans was a healthy scratch after both Liddell and Irvin dropped off the card.

Liddell did make it to England, but only to take part in a question-and-answer session Friday with members of the UFC Fight Club.

While the card has gone through many changes, it throws up some intriguing bouts.

The 34-year-old Hughes (43-6) embarks on his 50th pro fight against 24-year-old Alves, a hard-hitting Brazilian who will be looking to resist Hughes' takedowns and punish the former 170-pound champion with his standup game.

"It will be an interesting matchup between Thiago and I," said Hughes. "Very traditional, striker versus grappler.

"I've tried to cut my ties with what I've been doing lately and get back to the old Matt Hughes. It's funny when you get older in this sport and you start learning things, you start seeing how many ways you can actually lose and it slows you down a little bit."

Hughes is 1-2 in his last three fights, with both losses at the hands of Canadian Georges St. Pierre.

The Florida-based Alves (20-4) is coming off an impressive win over Karo (The Heat) Parisyan, a second-round TKO marking the first time Parisyan had been stopped in his 23-fight career.

Bisping (16-1) didn't find out he was fighting at UFC 85 until Silva told him in the Octagon after he beat (Chainsaw) Charles McCarthy at UFC 83 on April 19 in Montreal. The popular English fighter could have his hands full with Day (17-5), who celebrated his UFC debut in Montreal by manhandling Alan (The Talent) Belcher.

The move down to middleweight has left Bisping looking ripped, but Day, a big man with dark brooding looks that exude menace, promises to be a handful for the local favourite.

Sixteen of Day's 17 wins have come by knockout or submission (the other victory is a decision over David Loiseau).

"He was one of the best-kept secrets in MMA," before UFC 83, Zelaznik said of Day, who took six years to break into the UFC.

Day, 29, seems unfazed by the prospect of being the villain here after having the Canadian crowd behind him in Montreal.

"Whatever they want to bring Saturday night, I'll be ready for it," he said of the English fans.

Bisping finds himself in the position St. Pierre was at UFC 83, the local hero trying to juggle training with heavy media demands. He will also be looking to erase memories of his last UFC outing in London, when he was awarded a controversial split decision over Matt Hamill at UFC 75 last September.

Marcus (The Irish Hand Grenade) Davis faces off against Mike (Quick) Swick in what promises to be an explosive weltwerweight bout. Davis, a former pro boxer riding an 11-fight MMA winning streak, warned fans they should not expect the fight to go to the ground.

"Our plan is to go out there and just kick the piss out of each other," said Davis. "Honestly, that's my plan."

Also, middleweight Nate Marquardt (29-7-1) faces Brazilian Thales Leites (12-1) in a fight that has taken three tries to happen. Earlier attempts were derailed by Leites' paperwork issues and hand injury.

Brazilian behemoth Fabricio Werdum (10-3-1), coming off a UFC 80 win over Gabriel Gonzaga, tackles heavyweight Brandon (The Truth) Vera (8-1), whose four-fight UFC win streak was snapped by Tim Sylvia last time out at UFC 77.

NOTES -- Asked about women's MMA, Matt Hughes says he is not a big fan. "Personally I just don't like to see a woman get hit, whether it's by another woman or not." England's Michael Bisping probably lost a few female fans when he jokingly added: "Surely women don't have time, with all the cooking and cleaning." ... The Maximum Fighting Championship says veteran Drew Fickett will face Ryan (The Real Deal) Ford for its welterweight championship belt on July 25 in Edmonton at MFC 17: Hostile Takeover. Ford, an Edmonton native, is 6-0 while Fickett is 33-5.