Urijah Faber drops weight clases for WEC bantamweight battle

Former WEC featherweight champion is dropping to 135 pounds for a bantamweight fight against Takeya Mizugaki on Nov. 11.

Urijah Faber is dropping weight, as many suggested when he was beaten by WEC featherweight champion Jose Aldo last spring, and will fight Takeya Mizukgaki as a bantamweight in November as part of one of the last WEC cards.

The WEC has been absorbed by the UFC in a union of two Zuffa, LLC-owned entities that was announced this week as a merger.

If former WEC featherweight champ Faber wants to regain a championship belt, he's going to have to win on Nov. 11, then beat either Dominick Cruz or Scott Jorgensen, who battle for the 135-pound crown currently held by Cruz in the final WEC event on Dec. 16. Given popularity of "The California Kid" in mixed martial arts circles, a win over Mizugaki would pretty much guarantee a title shot.

Faber boasts a record of 23-4-0, all as a featherweight. Mizugaki's record is 13-4-2. The rest of the card for the fights at the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas includes featherweights  Chad Mendes vs. Javier Vazquez and Josh Grispi vs. Erik Koch, plus ex-bantamweight champ Brian Bowles against Wagnney Fabiano. Several lesser fights are also on the card, but may not be part of the 9 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 11, telecast on Versus.

The Thursday, Dec. 16, card also will be televised by Versus. In addition to the Cruz-Jorgensen bout, it will feature a title fight between lightweight champ Ben Henderson and Anthony Pettis in a battle of 155-pounders. The fights will be in Glendale, Ariz., native Henderson's home town.