Ricky Simon will try to spoil the return of Urijah Faber later tonight (Sat., July 13, 2019) at UFC on ESPN+ 13 live on ESPN+ from inside Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif., and push his current UFC bantamweight win streak to four.
It is a tremendous opportunity for Simon, who has taken the UFC’s bantamweight division by storm since making his debut early last year. The 26-year-old has leaned on sheer explosiveness and toughness to outlast some very skilled opponents at 135 pounds, including Merab Dvalishvili and Brazilian veteran Rani Yahya.
That said, Simon will meet his toughest task to date later tonight at UFC Sacramento when he takes on “California Kid.” Despite not fighting in nearly three years, Faber remains a very dangerous fighter. It’s not going to be easy for Simon to ruin the veteran’s hometown return, but Simon believes his skill set is simply more relevant at this point in time.
“When I got the call to fight Urijah, I was so pumped,” Simon told MMA Weekly. “He’s a Hall of Famer, he’s a legend, but he’s getting old. I think we have similar styles, but I’m going to be more explosive, faster, stronger, and I’m going to win just about every position that we get into.
“(Faber’s name) does for me as far as the build-up, recognition, and eyes on the fight. With bigger names, the experience is overall going to be better, and better for my career. But it could be Urijah Faber or another prospect, I don’t care, I’m going to try to knock you out.”
Simon, who has won eight-straight fights overall, sports an extremely fan-friendly fighting style that often sparks energy into any UFC card he touches. A victory over a well-known name like Faber, especially if it comes in the form of a knockout or submission, will further grow Simon’s UFC stock and push him closer to the division’s top 10.
“I’m a firm believer in setting goals, and I set the goal for 2019 to break the Top 10,” said Simon.
“I already broke the Top 15, and now I’m fighting a Hall of Famer, and after this I’d like to get a Top 10 fight, and break into the Top 10 and get a little bit closer to the ultimate goal of becoming the UFC bantamweight champion.”
What say you, Maniacs? Is Simon going to pull off the biggest win of his career and take out Faber later tonight at UFC Sacramento?
Sound off!