Neither Rampage nor Machida guaranteed Title Shot with win

With UFC 122 in the books, the focus now turns to Saturday's UFC 123 headliner between former champions Lyoto Machida and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.

And though the light-heavyweight bout may seem a likely No. 1 contender's bout, UFC president Dana White told MMAjunkie.com he's not ready to promise a title shot to the winner just yet.

"I don't know," he told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). "The fight has to happen first (before I decide)."

Saturday's pay-per-view show takes place at the Palace of Auburn Hills in suburban Detroit and is bolstered by a B.J. Penn vs. Matt Hughes co-headliner. But the bout that could have the biggest and most immediate impact on its division is Machida (16-1 MMA, 8-1 UFC) vs. Jackson (30-8 MMA, 5-2 UFC).

For the first time in his eight-year career, Machida enters the event off a defeat. Back in May, he lost his title to Mauricio "Shogun" Rua, and he's anxious to get a shot at redemption. Jackson, meanwhile, had defeated Wanderlei Silva and Keith Jardine and then entered a No. 1 contender's bout with Rashad Evans at UFC 114. But Jackson suffered a decision loss in the May bout and now finds himself in a must-win situation to remain a contender.

"Shogun," meanwhile, has been on the shelf with a knee injury since winning the belt, and Evans patiently has waited for his return. That title fight now is expected to take place in March at UFC 128, likely in the United Arab Emirates, with Rua's recovery progressing as scheduled.

"He's had these knee problems before, and he got his knee done in Brazil, and then never did the therapy he was supposed to do," White said of Rua. "(He) always tried to come back too soon. The guy who [treated] his knee this time is the best. He might even be the best in the world, and 'Shogun's' done all the right things. (He) did the right rehab, taken time off, (and) didn't come back training too soon. So everything's on schedule, and he's looking good."

But with a highly anticipated Ryan Bader vs. Jon Jones light-heavyweight bout scheduled for UFC 126 (the same Super Bowl weekend card that also includes former champs Rich Franklin vs Forrest Griffin), White isn't sure who may fight the Rua-Evans winner.

But he knows the division will be one of the most competitive in 2011.

"The 205-pound division is so stacked with so many good fights," he said. "I'm waiting for this logjam to free up. [Rua's] knee is clogging this whole thing up. So once his knee is healed up, we're going to be putting on some sick 205-pound fights next year."


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