UFC Pay-Per-View Moved To FS1 After Losing Main Event

UFC 196 has been on a roller coaster ride over the past week, and it seems as if UFC fixed the tracks before the whole thing got derailed.

According to Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports, UFC 196 will now air on Fox Sports 1 on February 6, with former UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks taking on #8-ranked Stephen "Wonderboy" Thompson in the night's main event. The show was originally set to air on PPV.

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The switch happened because of the carousel surrounding the UFC Heavyweight Title. Often plagued with injuries, former champion Cain Velasquez was pulled from the fight with a back ailment, and then replaced by Stipe Miocic. However, Heavyweight Champion Fabricio Werdum said he had an injury of his own, and backed out as well.

It's worth noting that Velasquez has only fought six times in five years, and Werdum has only fought 8 times in six years. Former champion Josh Barnett offered to step up and face Stipe Miocic for the interim title, which didn't end up happening.

Despite losing out on the title fight, UFC 196 still features nine ranked fighters in the UFC, including former title challenger Joseph Benavidez and TUF 10 winner Roy Nelson. The prelims will see Mickey Gall compete, and if he emerges victorious, he'll face CM Punk later this year.