(Former featherweight champion Urijah Faber will get another crack at the bantamweight title.)
UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz may be out of his UFC 148 fight with Urijah Faber on July 7th, but “The California Kid” will still get a title bout that night, according to UFC President Dana White. “So what’s going to happen is Urijah Faber will, he’s going to fight still. He’s going to fight on the same card. Now, I’m looking for the right opponent. The guy who deserves this shot at Urijah Faber,” White said on Tuesday’s episode of UFC Tonight, according to MMA Weekly.
Faber, who was also interviewed on UFC Tonight, said he imagines that either Renan Barao, Ivan Menjivar or Michael McDonald will get a crack at him but does not know for certain. Barao is riding a seven-year win streak and is currently slated to face Menjivar at UFC 148. McDonald knocked out former champion Miguel Torres last month.
White also confirmed that Cruz will stay on to complete his tenure as coach on TUF 15 despite his knee injury. “Cruz will stay on. Cruz has done a phenomenal job coaching his team,” White said.
This is Cruz’s second consecutive injury requiring surgery. After his successful title defense over Demetrius Johnson last fall, Cruz needed to have his right hand repaired after ligament and tendon damage. He injured his left hand a similar manner after his fight prior to that one, against Faber.
Now Cruz faces a long road to recovery after blowing out his ACL, allegedly at the hands of a woman. Should Faber manage to walk away with the interim bantamweight belt, the eventual rubber match between he and Cruz will hold even more significance.