Urijah Faber: UFC Bantamweight Division Most Interesting It’s Ever Been
Urijah Faber is right where he wants to be. “The California Kid” is back in the mix of the now stacked UFC bantamweight division. Historically, there has been a mere five UFC bantamweight champions. Currently, the division is loaded with championship-caliber talent from top to bottom. The bantamweight division has never been more exciting according to Faber, who is set to take on Petr Yan at UFC 245. (H/T MMA Junkie)
“You’ve got up and coming guys like Aljamain Sterling and Petr Yan and Song Yadong and (Cory) Sandhagen and the list goes on of guys who we probably haven’t even heard of yet. Then you got the current level guys like Cody Garbrandt… well, (T.J. Dillashaw is) out for cheating of course and you’ve got the guys who have been in the mix.” Faber explained when speaking with UFC Unfiltered.
Adding to the division’s excitement will be the likes of Jose Aldo and Frankie Edgar. The two legends are new to the division after dropping down from featherweight. The pair are also in hopes of one more run at UFC gold. Similar to Aldo and Edgar, Faber is looking to make one more run at the title.
“I want the top dogs. Who do you guys think are the top dogs? Who’s going to get me closest to fighting Cejudo for a belt,” Faber continued. “And Dana gave me a bunch of different options, guys that are ranked much lower, and he said you want to be in title contention then this is the guy. And I’m like ‘All right, let’s do it’. And he’s an exciting guy.” Faber continued.
Faber looks to capitalize on his opportunity at UFC 245 in Vegas. following his victory over Cody Simon this past July, as he is now ranked 12th in the division. On the other hand, Yan cracked the top five and is sitting at number four. On the same night, Marlon Moraes (number-one ranked) will welcome Jose Aldo to the division. Consequently, the landscape of the bantamweight division will be changing drastically one way or another on December 14th.
Where do you see the bantamweight division stacking up against other divisions?
