Machida-Rampage Highlights an MMA November You're Unlikely to Remember

What, no event on Thanksgiving?

After a seven-event October, the MMA calendar is a bit light in November with just four events—all coming within a 10-day stretch.

Thursday, November 11: WEC 52
Las Vegas, NV—Live on Versus

It's fitting that one of the final two WEC events in the organization's history will be main-evented by the fighter most synonymous with them.

Urijah Faber will make his bantamweight debut against Takeya Mizugaki, the first step on what many believe will be a road to a title shot in 2011. If that happens, Faber will compete for a UFC belt for the first time in his career.

But to do so, he'll have to get through Mizugaki (13-4-2), coming off a decision win over Rani Yahya ini April. He's just 2-2 in his last four fights with a notable loss to then-champion Miguel Torres in 2009 that was one of the most memorable title fights of the year.

Also on the card, Joe Benavidez fights for the first time since losing to Bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz, battling Wagnney Fabiano. As noted here on B/R last week, Josh Grispi was pulled from his fight with Erik Koch so he could challenge Jose Aldo for the UFC Featherweight Championship on January 1st.

Saturday, November 13: UFC 122
Oberhausen, Germany—Tape Delay on Spike

Two days later, MMA fans get another free show when Spike airs the UFC's vacation to Germany via tape delay. Good thing it's free as this is one of the most non-buzzworthy events the organization has had in recent memory.

Nate Marquardt and Yushin Okami headline for what is expected to be the No. 1 competition for the UFC Middleweight title. Marquardt has won four of his last five and was last seen decimating Rousimar Palhares in September, while Okami defeated Mark Munoz by split decision at the August debut on Versus.

Other than that, this is not a star-studded event. Jorge Rivera vs. Alessio Sakara, Dennis Siver vs. Andre Winner, Amir Sodollah vs. Peter Sobotta and Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Goran Reljic round out the main card.

Can we just merge the WEC card with this one?

Friday, November 19: ShoMMA 12
Jackson, MS—Live on Showtime

This card got hit hard on Monday when it was announced prospect Ryan Couture (yes, Randy's son) will miss the event due to a staph infection. Even at 1-0, Couture was arguably the biggest name on this event which tells you about the rest of the card.

Yep, this one is for the hardcores.

Justin Wilcox vs. Vitor Ribeiro is the main event with Antwan Britt vs. Ovince St. Preux and Jan Finney vs. Liz Carmouche providing support. I'll be watching, but unfortunately, not a lot of others will be.

Saturday, November 20: UFC 123
Detroit, MI—Live on PPV

By far, the biggest event of the month is UFC 123, the organization's first trip back to Detroit since the early days of the Octagon. And for waiting, Detroit Rock City will get two fights featuring some very big names.

The main event is headlined by two former 205-pound champs looking to get back into the title mix as Lyoto Machida takes on Rampage Jackson.

It's a crucial fight for both men as they're coming off notable May losses: Machida dropping his belt to Mauricio Rua in their rematch, while Jackson lost via decision to rival Rashad Evans. Both guys need this which makes it a very interesting fight to discuss.

The co-main event marks the third fight in the trilogy between BJ Penn and Matt Hughes. Hughes looked surprisingly dominant in dispatching Ricardo Almeida at August's UFC 117 via first round submission, while Penn got worked over for five rounds by Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar in their rematch at August's UFC 118.

Like Machida/Rampage, this fight will tell a lot about where both men are at in their careers—especially Penn.

Early Fight Of The Night candidate? George Sotiropolous vs. Joe Lauzon.

Josh Nason is a New England-based freelance MMA journalist that covers live events, has written for FIGHT! Magazine and frequently does radio/podcast appearances. Follow him on Twitter, will ya?