5 Things You Didn't Know About MMA Fighter Urijah Faber

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Ever since the two squared off for the WEC Featherweight Championship in 2007—where Urijah forced Dominick to tap out early in the first round—Cruz has been desperate for the opportunity to get back into the Octagon with Faber. Now that both fighters are in the UFC and competing in the same weight class, there is no reason we shouldn’t see Faber-Cruz II in the near future. Both fighters have traded verbal jabs, and Faber clearly has his sights set on a rematch—and a replay. “It was a fairly fast fight when I fought Dominick, and now he’s got the belt," he says. "So, it’s just a matter of time before I get my hands on his strap.” 

When Urijah was trying to figure out a nickname that truly described himself, he drew a blank. “I wasn’t feeling like I was a regular ‘Bonecrusher,’ ‘Executioner,’ or any of that kind of stuff. I’m just a kid that was born and raised in Cali.” And that was when the light bulb clicked, and "The California Kid" was born. “People were finding it hard to believe that I was a fighter. They thought I looked more like a surfer. I had that California look: sun-kissed skin, always in sandals and shorts. So, it just kinda fit.”

Probably the best way to describe Faber when it comes to fighting in the Octagon would be as a guy getting laid for the first time—it just doesn’t last that long. We kid, but with only three of his twenty-four fights going to a decision, it's a fitting analogy. "My number one goal from the beginning of the fight is to stop the fight. When I go in there, my mentality is all about ending the fight as soon as possible, and that’s the speed I go from the get-go. I don’t like leaving it up to the judges."

When discussing Faber’s most difficult fights, you get the idea that quitting is the furthest thing from his mind whether he’s losing or really really losing. “The second time I fought Mike Brown, I had broken two bones in my right hand, and dislocated my thumb. I was fighting like that for 25 minutes. With Jose Aldo, at the end of the second round, my leg was already starting to feel his kick. It was like getting beat with a bat on my leg for like 20 minutes. I just had to grit it out and do my best and try to win.” Many men would have probably bitched out a long time ago, but not Faber. “I’m in there till the bitter end. I’ve always been someone that pushes through adversity. It’s just a mentality that I’ve always had. I think that’s what defines me. There’s no quit in me.”

Instead of us trying to explain the story, we’ll just let Urijah tell you. “'Urijah' basically means 'the Lord is my light.' It’s about Uriah the Hittite, from the Old Testament. He had a wife, Bathsheba, who was a hot chick, and he was a mighty warrior in King David’s army. While Uriah was away at battle, King David was having an affair with his wife, and accidently got her pregnant. King David brought Uriah home from the war to give him a night with his wife, so they could cover up the fact that she was carrying King David’s child. Uriah wouldn’t sleep with her because his men were at battle, so King David sent him out to the front of the battle to be killed. Good story. He was all about bros before hoes, and that’s pretty cool.”