Popular bantamweight Urijah Faber will return to the Octagon this summer, and he’ll be taking on one of the division’s hotter fighters in Alex Cacares. They will square off at UFC 175 on July 5 in Las Vegas as part of the pay-per-view’s main card. ESPN.com’s Brett Okamoto broke the news on Wednesday afternoon, and the UFC confirmed it via Twitter a short time later.
The perennial contender Faber (30-7) is coming off a title bid against Renan Barao at UFC 169, in which “The California Kid” came up short for the third time (losing via first round TKO). Before then, though, he stormed back into contention under the tutelage of Duane Ludwig at Team Alpha Male, going a perfect 4-0 in 2013.
The 25-year old Caceres — a.k.a. “Bruce Leeroy” — is currently riding a five-fight unbeaten streak, and is coming off an impressive submission victory over Sergio Pettis in January.
Cacares was a cast member of The Ultimate Fighter 12, and since coming to the UFC has put together a 5-3-(1) record. He is currently ranked No. 13 on the media-driven UFC rankings at 135 pounds. His lone blemish since mid-2012 was originally a split decision victory over Kyung Ho Kang this past March, later switched to a “no contest” when it was discovered that he tested positive for marijuana.
Although the UFC is usually hesitant to book a fighter coming off a loss against one riding a winning streak, according to the ESPN report Caceres specifically asked to fight Faber next.
UFC 175 takes place at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, and will pit middleweight champion Chris Weidman against Lyoto Machida in the main event.