UFC News: Urijah Faber teases retirement after Petr Yan fight on Saturday
Urijah Faber has been successful in his UFC comeback run so far. This past July, he returned to Sacramento, California to take on Ricky Simon and it wasn't even a minute before The California Kid got the finish.
He takes a big step up in competition this Saturday as he faces rising contender Petr Yan. The Russian serves as a big test for him and from the look of things, this run has more to do with a desire to fight and a title shot.
Or perhaps the state of the Bantamweight division excited Faber enough to return, as he admitted that it's currently far more exciting than it ever was before. Faber teased that this could be his last fight, especially given the state of the division and the number of names that are in the mix. He told theScore [H/T Bjpenn.com]:
"Dana said, ‘Look, with you in the picture. It’s [Jose] Aldo vs. [Marlon] Moraes. [Cory] Sandhagen vs. Frankie [Edgar]. It’s you vs. Yan.’ I imagine whoever the highest-clouted guy is that wins. There will kind of be a lineup from there."
He proceeded to say that win, lose, or draw, this could be his last fight:
“But there’s also Dominick Cruz coming back soon. That guy is always a force to be reckoned with. Cody Garbrandt is on the comeback. We got TJ [Dillashaw] sitting there trying to figure out the next little way to get ahead. There’s a lot of guys out there. This could be win, lose or draw my last fight. I don’t know but I’ll always make myself available. I’ll be looking for the title fight.”
It's certainly going to be an interesting situation. Aljamain Sterling is out for a while after having undergone surgery, so one would imagine that he's not next. Since Cory Sandhagen vs Frankie Edgar is also unlikely to happen in January, both of them are out of the title picture in the immediate future. This leaves Jose Aldo, Marlon Moraes, Petr Yan, and Urijah Faber.
One would imagine that if Aldo beats Moraes, he may have a claim to a title shot. Moraes wouldn't get a shot with a win over Aldo since reigning champion Henry Cejudo already finished him earlier this year. This certainly puts Faber in a favorable position if he can get a spectacular win over Petr Yan. It is, however, easier said than done.
But with that said, Cejudo has expressed an interest in facing Faber so he may push for that fight.