Former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber made a strong return when he defeated Ricky Simon via TKO at UFC Fight Night Sacramento last July. After that moment, the fighter had aspirations to go on and finally win his first title within the promotion; however, those dreams were shattered a bit when he suffered a devasting loss to Petr Yan at UFC 245.
While there were some questions regarding his in-ring career going forward, Faber doesn’t appear to be hanging up the gloves anytime soon, as the UFC Hall of Famer revealed on
AG Fight that he’s signed a new deal with the promotion:
“I told Dana I don’t want the temptation from all the other companies when I return from retirement. So we renegotiated the contract. I still have some fights left, but it doesn’t necessarily mean I’ll do one of them. We’ll see what opportunities come up. I’ll stay in shape, go to the gym and have fun,”
Despite his recent set back, there are still a number fights that Faber still wants to have before deciding to officially walk away from the sport for good, with long-time rival T.J. Dillashaw at the top of the list:
“Before I lost to Petr Yan, I wanted a title fight. I was the underdog against the young prospect, number three guy in the world, I knew it would be a hard fight. For my next fight, if they give me an opponent that makes sense, I need to win again before I set my goals, be it a superfight against T.J. Dillashaw, or being able to take a title fight on short notice, or facing one of the big names in the division. You got Dominick Cruz, T.J., Jose Aldo, Henry Cejudo, Marlon Moraes and all the up and coming guys who haven’t made a name for themselves yet. It’s an interesting time and I’ll take my time and see what I feel in my heart. Those are the fights that interest me, but I need to win again before that,” says Faber.
There’s no word on when Faber will make his return to the octagon; however, a fight between him and Dillashaw – who’s serving a two-year suspension from USADA – would definitely be a huge draw when the former UFC Bantamweight Champion returns.