Urijah Faber has made most of his career hay at featherweight. But he has never competed in the UFC Octagon at 145 pounds.
That will change on May 16.
Faber will face former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar in the main event of UFC 165. It’s only one of the firsts on the evening, as it also will be the UFC’s debut foray into the Philippines. The event will take place at Mall of Asia Arena in Manila.
The news came Wednesday night on UFC Tonight, which airs weekly on Fox Sports 1 (h/t MMAFighting.com).
“This fight was hard to put together,” Faber’s manager, Mike Roberts, told broadcaster Ariel Helwani on the show. “I think Urijah and Frankie both know this is a legacy fight and wanted to do it for the fans. At least I know that’s true for Urijah. It was the hardest fight to put together for me, ever.”
Here we go! You’ve all been asking for this for a long time. The Most Shady v The California Kid.… http://t.co/caCIYjDcD5
— Frankie Edgar (@FrankieEdgar) February 12, 2015
The 35-year-old Faber (32-7) was arguably the face of World Extreme Cagefighting as its longtime featherweight title holder. WEC, which eventually folded and exported much of its roster to the UFC, was known as a strong proving ground for lighter-weight fighters. Faber held the title for more than two years, defending the belt five times before eventually losing it to Mike Brown in 2008.
He is 8-3 in the UFC, with every fight coming at bantamweight. All three of those losses (two to Renan Barao and one to Dominick Cruz) came in title bouts.
The 33-year-old Edgar (18-4-1) captured the UFC lightweight strap in 2010 and held it for two years before losing to Benson Henderson in 2012. He is 3-1 since moving to featherweight, with his only loss coming in a title fight to then- and current champion Jose Aldo.
Both fighters bring a solid wrestling background to the table and will complement those bases with solid boxing games. Faber uses grappling more often as a strength, while Edgar relies more on speed and stand-up exchanges.
Though this bout may not have the immediate title implications that it would have had a few years ago, it is still sure to draw its fair share of eyeballs, given the popularity and prestige of the two men involved.
Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com