Urijah Faber

At 44 years old, Urijah Faber has this physical status:

Christopher Faber (born May 14, 1979) is an American mixed martial artist and actor who has signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

He competes as a bantamweight and has previously competed as a featherweight.

As of October 28, 2019, he is ranked No. 2 in the UFC bantamweight rankings.

He began Brazilian jiujitsu shortly and quickly gained a brown belt under Fábio "Pateta" Prado, owing to his solid foundation in wrestling.

Faber claimed the WEC Featherweight Championship at WEC 19 on March 17, 2006, and held the trophy for over two years before losing it to Mike Brown at WEC 36 on November 5, 2008.

He fought for the WEC Featherweight Championship two more times, as well as four times for the UFC Bantamweight Championship. Faber is widely regarded as one of MMA's first converts to lighter weight classes.

Faber was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame on July 6, 2017, as part of the Modern-era wing, following his retirement on July 6, 2017.

He came out of retirement in 2019 and defeated Ricky Simon by first-round TKO.

Early life

Faber was born in Isla Vista, California, on May 14, 1979, to Theo and Suzanne Faber. He is of Dutch descent on his father's side, and Italian, English, and Irish on his mother's side. He attended Glen Edwards Middle School, Casa Roble High School, and Lincoln High School (Lincoln, California). Ryan and Michaella are two of Ryan and Michaella's siblings. Faber obtained a bachelor's degree in Human Development from the University of California, Davis. Faber qualified for the national NCAA tournament in 2001 and 2002 in wrestling while at UC-Davis.

Personal life

Cali, who was born on March 14, 2019, and Rome, who was born on October 8, 2020, Faber and Jaslyn have a daughter, Cali, and a son, Rome.

Faber decided on short notice in December 2021 to participate in his first Combat Jiu-Jitsu match against a CJ world champion Elias Anderson, but passport issues led to Faber's replacement, who lost to Anderson.

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Mixed martial arts career

Faber made his professional MMA debut on November 12, 2003, defeating Poes Manne by a guillotine choke at 1:22 of round 1. On February 12, 2004, Faber defeated George Adkins by TKO (strikes), giving him a chance to challenge GC Bantamweight champion David Velasquez. Faber defeated Velasquez by a unanimous vote on June 6, 2004, becoming the current GC Bantamweight champion. Faber defeated Del Hawkins by TKO (strikes) at 3:19 of the first round in his first title defense. Faber took on King of the Cage, the GC's parent company, after this fight.

Faber defeated Rami Boukai by majority decision on September 24, 2004, just a month after his last fight. Faber claimed the King of the Cage Bantamweight Championship on November 14, 2004, co-defending it with the GC Bantamweight Championship.

Faber returned to GC on March 13, 2005, defeating David Granados by rear naked choke at 2:13 of round 1. For the first time, he defended his KOTC belt, defeating Hiroyuki Abe by TKO (cut) at 2:37 of the third round. Faber lost the GC Bantamweight championship to Tyson Griffin by TKO (strikes) in the third round, returning to GC on September 10, 2005.

Faber defended his KOTC title again on October 29, 2005, defeating Shawn Bias by guillotine choke at 1:24 of the first round. He returned to GC on December 11, 2005, defeating Charles Bennett by rear-naked choke at 4:38 of round 1. Faber then competed at a TKO Major League MMA tournament against Ivan Menjivar on January 8, 2006. When Menjivar landed an illegal kick to a downed Faber, Faber claimed by disqualification at 2:02 of the second round.

Faber qualified for the first time in the World Extreme Cagefighting Championship on March 17, 2006, defeating Cole Escovedo by second-round doctors stoppage and winning the WEC Featherweight Championship. For the third time, he competed for the King of the Cage Bantamweight Championship, defeating Charlie Valencia by a rear naked choke submission at 3:09 of the first round. Faber returned to GC in 2006 and defeated Naoya Uematsu by TKO (strikes) at 3:35 of round 2 to regain the GC Bantamweight championship, thereby retaining three titles at once. On September 9, 2006, Faber faced Enoch Wilson by TKO (strikes) at 1:01 of the second round, putting an end to his fight in the Full Contact Promotions group. Faber fought Bibiano Fernandes by TKO (cut) at 4:16 of round 1. After signing a WEC deal, Faber resigned his KOTC and GC titles after it was purchased by Zuffa in December 2006.

McCullough vs. St. John, The Great British Confederation 25: The challenge was made at WEC 25: McCullough vs. For the first time since winning the WEC Featherweight Championship ten months ago, Cope defended his WEC Featherweight Championship, defeating Joe Pearson by submission (strikes) at 2:31 of the first round. Cong. vs. Alessio on March 24, 2007, he defended his title for the second time by defeating Dominick Cruz by guillotine choke submission at 1:38 of round 1, the first of only three losses in Cruz's career.

WEC 28: The WreckCage defeated Chance Farrar by rear-naked choke submission at 3:19 of the first round. Faber called out K-1 Heroes' 2005 Middleweight Tournament Champion Norifumi Yamamoto in a post-fight interview, though the contest never happened. Faber took a six-month break from fighting, the longest of his career, after this match. He was back at WEC 31 on December 12, 2007, defeating Jeff Curran by guillotine choke submission at 4:34 of the second round. Jens Pulver's WEC debut, who was returning to featherweight from the lightweight division, was also on the agenda. Cub Swanson was introduced by Pulver in the first round of their match, setting up a title match between Pulver and Faber in Pulver's WEC debut. Both Pulver and Faber said in their post-fight interviews that they wanted to fight each other, and they were scheduled to meet in WEC 34 on June 1, 2008. Pulver vs. Pulver. Faber and Pulver engaged in a constant back-and-forth battle, but neither man was able to finish the other, and the match went full five rounds, the first time in Faber's WEC career that one of his fights had gone the distance. The judges rated Faber's match as a unanimous decision (50–45, 50–44, and 50–44). This was also the first time one of Pulver's fights at featherweight had come to a conclusion, and it was the first time Pulver had been disqualified at this weight class.

Faber was due to face Mike Brown at WEC 36 in Hollywood, Florida, on September 10, 2008. However, this combat was postponed due to Hurricane Ike's threat, and it was rescheduled for November 5, 2008 at the same location. Faber was disqualified via TKO at 2:23 of the first round.

Faber defeated Jens Pulver in a rematch on January 25, 2009, with Faber winning by guillotine choke submission at 1:34 of the first round. After the fight, Faber interviewed WEC Featherweight Champion Mike Brown, who was seated at ringside and announced his intention of regaining his title. Brown responded to Faber's remarks by saying that a rematch between the two teams would be something "the fans want to see," he said.

Mike Brown was defeated by a unanimous decision (49–46, 49–48, and 48–47) in front of his hometown crowd in Sacramento for his second time at WEC 41. Faber broke his right hand and dislocated his left thumb earlier in the match, reverting to using mainly elbows and kicks beginning in the third round. Nonetheless, Faber threw 15 left hooks or jabs, some of which were connected, even in the fifth round. In a fight story, Sherdog and ESPN.com reported that Faber's "right hand was no match for the top of Mike Brown's head." Faber said immediately after the fight that despite the close call, he would still like another fight against Brown.

Faber appeared on WEC 43 as a guest commentator and returned to action in January. In the third round of the WEC 46, he submitted his Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt, Raphael Assunço, by rear naked choke submission, receiving the Submission of the Night award.

Faber earned a chance to face José Aldo for the WEC Featherweight Championship on April 24, 2010, at WEC 48. He had no answer for Aldo's kicks, which sent him to the ground multiple times. Faber was disqualified by a unanimous decision.

After losing to José Aldo at featherweight, Faber decided to drop to bantamweight. At WEC 50, he was supposed to retire against Japanese striker Takeya Mizugaki on August 18, 2010. However, Faber was forced off the field due to a traumatic injury. Mizugaki was also banned from the event as a result.

The bout with Mizugaki was postponed and took place on November 11, 2010, WEC 52. Faber defeated Mizugaki via rear naked choke in the first round, earning the award of Submission of the Night. Faber defeated Mizugaki in his ninth WEC match, a record shared by Antonio Banuelos and Poppies Martinez.

The WEC and the UFC joined the WEC on October 28, 2010. All WEC fighters were moved over to compete in the two new weight divisions as part of the merge.

On March 19, 2011, Faber made his promotional debut against former WEC Bantamweight Champion Eddie Wineland at UFC 128. Faber won the back-and-forth contest by a unanimous vote.

The match between Dominick Cruz, the only one to lose by Faber in 2007 was held at UFC 132, which Faber lost by unanimous decision on July 2, 2011. Both participants received Fight of the Night awards.

On November 19, 2011, Faber met Brian Bowles at UFC 139. According to reports, the winner would be named with a trophy shot. Faber defeated Bowles via a second round submission (guillotine choke), receiving nomination of the Night Award.

Following his win over UFC 139, Faber was selected to be a mentor on The Ultimate Fighter: Live opposite Dominick Cruz. Following the conclusion of the reality show, it was announced that Faber/Cruz III was due to take place on July 7, 2012, at UFC 148. Cruz was however forced to pull out of the match due to an ACL injury. Faber then confirmed that it would remain on the UFC 148 fight card and face Renan Baro in a match for the UFC Interim Bantamweight Championship, in which the champion will face Dominick Cruz for the UFC Undisputed Bantamweight Championship later this month. However, the Faber/Baro bout was also pushed from UFC 148 to UFC 149 on July 21, 2012, the event's new main event, due to an injury to headliner José Aldo, who was supposed to face Erik Koch in the originally planned main event. He lost the fight by majority vote after suffering a fractured rib in the first round.

In a rematch against Ivan Menjivar at UFC 157 on February 23, 2013. Faber defeated Menjivar in the first round with a rear naked choke submission.

Faber defeated Scott Jorgensen in the Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale on April 13, 2013. Faber defeated Jorgensen via rear-naked choke at 3:16 in the 4th round of a fast-paced and scientific match. "He knows my stuff," Faber said in the ringside interview, so it was a tough fight. I made one small technical mistake, but I was able to profit from it. Scotty is lauded for his courage in battling the bad guys.

On August 17, 2013, Faber met Iuri Alcântara at UFC Fight Night 26. Faber recovered and played his fighting and tenacious top game, defeating Alcântara 127 to 25 throughout the match, despite being in danger early in the first round. Faber gained a unanimous decision victory as a result.

On December 14, 2013, Faber confronted Michael McDonald at UFC on Fox 9. Faber stunned McDonald with a flurry of punches, McDonald jumped to the ground, and Faber concluded the match by submission due to a guillotine choke. Faber was given the nighttime accolades for his appearance.

Faber was picked as the replacement in the title match at UFC 169 after Dominick Cruz injured himself before his unification bout with Renan Baro. In the first round, Faber was disqualified by TKO. Baro was knocked down during the combat, and after that, he assaulted Faber, he continued to strike the ground. Faber grabbed Baro's leg and gave the referee the thumbs-up, signaling that he wanted the fight to continue. To Faber and the audience's delight, the referee did not see the thumbs-up and stepped in to end the match. In a post-fight interview, he told Joe Rogan that he thinks his colleague TJ Dillashaw should get the next crack at Baro.

On July 5, 2014, Faber will face Alex Caceres at UFC 175. He won the fight by submission, limiting Caceres to a rear naked choke at 1:09 of the third round.

On September 20, 2014, Faber was briefly linked to a bout with Masanori Kanehara at UFC Fight Night 52. However, Faber was reportedly dismissed before the match was revealed, and Kanehara faced Alex Caceres.

On December 6, 2014, Faber met Francisco Rivera for the second time at UFC 181. Faber was able to advance to the second round by a second round submission. Nevertheless, the verdict was tense, as Faber stunned Rivera with an eyepoke during a stand-up contest. The eyepoke went unnoticed by the referee, but it was soon after the fight came to an end. Rivera's leadership team announced that they planned to appeal the decision in the hopes that it would be changed to a no contest, and that the UFC could schedule a rematch with Faber. The NSAC stayed adamantly despite Faber's submission victory.

On March 21, 2015, a rematch with top contender Raphael Assunço was supposed to be the talk of UFC Fight Night 62. However, Assunço was forced out of the match after an ankle first fractured in mid-December 2014 was slow to recover and that he was unable to restart the proper preparations to prepare for the fight in that time period. Faber was pulled from the game, and he is likely to be rebooked, perhaps against a new adversary at a different date.

Frankie Edgar, the former UFC lightweight champion, fought for a longtime "superfight" at UFC Fight Night 66 on May 16, 2015. It was announced that the bout would be fought at featherweight, bantamweight, or somewhere in between. Faber lost his first appearance in a non-title match after being unanimously ruled.

At UFC 194, Faber met Frankie Saenz on December 12, 2015. He was able to win the back-and-forth match by unanimous vote.

On June 4, 2016, the UFC Bantamweight Championship featured a rubber match with Dominick Cruz. Crazy In Love by Beyonce starring Jay-Z was Faber's walkout song. He lost the fight by unanimous vote.

At UFC 203, Faber will meet Jimmie Rivera on September 10, 2016. He lost by a unanimous decision.

Faber announced in October 2016 that his next fight, a match against Brad Pickett on December 17, 2016 at UFC on Fox 22 in his home town of Sacramento, would be his last. Faber was voted unanimously to win the contest. Faber announced his retirement from the sport after a 13-year career.

Faber made his return to the Octagon on July 13, 2019, after two-and-a-half years away from mixed martial arts competition, as he met Ricky Simón. He won the first round by TKO, becoming the second fighter to win a UFC match after being inducted into the United FC Hall of Fame. He was named Performance of the Night for his win. Faber renewed his deal with the UFC after the fight.

On December 14, 2019, Faber faced Petr Yan at UFC 245. In the third round, he was disqualified by a knockout.

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Championships and awards

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • UFC Hall of Fame
  • Fight of the Night (one time) vs. Dominick Cruz
  • Performance of the Night (one time) vs. Ricky Simón
  • Submission of the Night (two times) vs. Brian Bowles and Michael McDonald
  • Third most finishes in UFC Bantamweight division history (7)
  • Tied (with Rani Yahya) for most submissions in UFC Bantamweight division history (6)
  • Tied (with Raphael Assunção and Marlon Vera) for third most wins in UFC Bantamweight division history (11)
  • Tied (with Marlon Vera) for second most fights in UFC Bantamweight division history (17)
• World Extreme Cagefighting
  • WEC Featherweight Championship (One time)
  • Five successful title defenses
  • Fight of the Night (three times) vs. Jeff Curran, Jens Pulver, and Mike Brown
  • Knockout of the Night (one time) vs. Joe Pearson
  • Submission of the Night (four times) vs. Dominick Cruz, Jens Pulver, Raphael Assunção, and Takeya Mizugaki
  • Most consecutive title defenses in WEC history (five)
  • Most successful title defenses in WEC history (five)
• King of the Cage
  • KOTC Bantamweight Championship (One time)
  • Five successful title defenses
• Gladiator Challenge
  • GC Bantamweight Championship (Two Times)
• MMAInsider.net
  • 2013 Fight Camp of the Year (Team Alpha Male)
• World MMA Awards
  • 2013 Submission of the Year vs. Ivan Menjivar (UFC 157)
• Sherdog
  • 2011 All-Violence First Team
  • 2013 All-Violence First Team