Taking back the belt, an interview with Urijah Faber

When you envision a family that encompasses a holistic, organic more “hippy-ish” way of life, you certainly don’t imagine a Mixed Martial Arts champion to evolve from that walk of life.  That is the life story of 30 year old Urijah Faber who just so happens to fit the aesthetic appearance of a surfer more than a dangerous professional fighter.  Urijah grew up in Sacramento, California with that organic lifestyle where he didn’t even endure immunizations as a young child, he did however eat healthy and excel in a variety of sports as a kid.  It was his dominating wrestling matches that served as the platform that would catapult his way into becoming a professional fighter.  The “California Kid” utilized those wrestling talents through his high school and college careers, where he received a B.S. in Human Development from the University of California-Davis and quickly began working as a wrestling coach following his graduation.

With a current record of 23-3, Faber is scheduled to regain his featherweight title belt against fellow WEC competitor Jose Aldo (16-1) in Urijah’s hometown of Sacramento on April 24^th.  Faber suffered a loss during WEC 41 to Mike Brown, which broke his accomplished winning streak of 13 consecutive wins since his loss to Tyson Griffin back in 2005.  His most recent fight was a win over Raphael Assuncao at WEC 46 in January by way of submission in the third round.  Urijah is anxious to win and focusing on his training at Capital City Fighting Alliance, where other fighters such as James Irvin and Scott Smith are bread.  Aside from his eventful MMA career, Faber was recently featured in an Amp Energy Drink commercial and launched his MMA clothing line “Form Athletics” earlier this year.  Juggling his hectic schedule, he was able to squeeze in a few questions on his new clothing line and upcoming title fight.

How is the preparation going for the Aldo match and has your camp changed the way you train at all for this particular fight?

Hasn’t really changed too much.  Different things I focus on, but pretty run of the mill.  I’ve had some of my training partners mimic Aldo’s style. Would you say your wrestling is your strongest fighting ability in the cage?

No, I would say my strongest attributes are creativity and conditioning.

Given there currently is not a featherweight division in the UFC, would you consider changing weight classes to compete for the organization?

No, the UFC and WEC are owned by the same company, they will be the ones that will dictate where I fight.  I just want to fight the fights the fans want to see.

We know you’ve stated previously that growing up your Mother was a free spirit, what was her role in your desire to start training to be a fighter?

Her role was her not wanting me to do it, but raising to me to follow my heart.  Both my parents have been supportive but never pushy.

If you could fight any opponent in any weight class whom would it be?

I would fight Jose Aldo for the 145 pound world championship.

Form Athletics, your recent MMA clothing launch is doing well.  Was this a part of the business you were anxious to get into?

I feel that the Form Athletics style was something that needed to happen in MMA.  I feel that this style fits me better than the skull and crossbones theme that are very prevalent.

Do you train fellow fighters or would you enjoy taking that on when you retire?

I have a whole team of guys that are at different levels.  I help train people and it will be a part of my life for a long time.

Will we be seeing the “Faber heads” waived by your fans at this fight? (The Faber heads are Urijah’s face on a stick that were recently banned from fights, but fans should be able to use them for his upcoming hometown title match.)

I’m sure there will be some Faber heads in the stands, but we will have a surprise memento for the fans to bring home.

What are your thoughts on the debate skeptics have brewing on you being chosen for the title shot versus Mike Brown?

I don’t really pay much attention to skeptics.  I’m sure I will fight Mike Brown again and he will probably fight Aldo again as well, but that fight just happened.

After having a successful MMA career with a large fan base and taking on the retail markets of the fans, what’s next for you?  Will you continue competing or is there another career you would like to dive into?

I’m doing my best to create business opportunities surrounded by my passions and I will spend time working with those.