Just months removed from the final bout of his career, Urijah Faber will join his rightful place in UFC history.
Faber, 37, was announced Saturday as the first member of the 2017 UFC Hall of Fame class. “The California Kid” will enter the Modern Era wing during a ceremony on July 6 in Las Vegas during International Fight Week.
“It’s nice to be recognized and it’s nice for folks to take time to acknowledge what I’ve done in the sport because I honestly haven’t had much time to do that myself,” Faber told UFC.com.
The native of Isla Vista, California, was an early MMA pioneer in the smaller weight classes, becoming the face of the WEC after originally turning pro in 2003. Faber (34-10) won the WEC featherweight championship in 2006 from Cole Escovedo and defended the title five times over the next two years, including a victory over Dominick Cruz in the first fight of their trilogy.
After the WEC dissolved, Faber made his UFC debut in 2011 and went on to challenge unsuccessfully for the bantamweight championship four separate times, suffering a pair of losses to both Cruz and Renan Barao in title bouts. He fought well late into his 30s and didn’t suffer consecutive defeats for the first time until 2016.
In December, Faber was victorious in his career finale when he outpointed Brad Pickett in his stomping grounds of Sacramento, where he founded Team Alpha Male in 2004.
“My goal was to build a tradition of champions and have the best team in the world, so it’s been something I’ve been thoughtful of,” he said. “It’s also part of the family and part of the community, which is an inspiring thing in its own right, and I enjoy that giving back.”
