Urijah Faber on UFC on FOX Sports 1 1 opponent: Nobody knows who the heck he is

It’s OK to admit you scratched your head when you heard Urijah Faber‘s next fight. In some ways, Faber did, too.

But that doesn’t mean “The California Kid” is taking his next challenge lightly. And because a few people just didn’t get it since his opponent wasn’t on their radar screens, that makes the fight that much more dangerous.

Faber (28-6 MMA, 4-2 UFC) meets Yuri Alcantara (28-4 MMA, 3-1 UFC) at UFC on FOX Sports 1 1, which takes place Aug. 17 at TD Garden in Boston.

“The face didn’t pop into my head when they said his name, but I remember seeing the guy fight, and he’s very tough,” Faber told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “It’s a dangerous fight in a lot of ways for me, but that’s where I’m at in my career – where I’m not necessarily gaining a ton from this fight other than the fight itself.”

But dangerous for Faber, a former WEC featherweight champ and two-time UFC bantamweight title challenger, has a double meaning. Yes, Alcantara poses threats in the fight. But if Faber wins, it’s a fight he’s supposed to win. And if he loses, well …

The problem for him is that the UFC’s bantamweight division is pretty tied up right now. Champion Dominick Cruz remains out after two knee surgeries. Interim champ Renan Barao was set to meet Eddie Wineland before hurting his foot. Faber already has wins over Scott Jorgensen, Ivan Menjivar and Raphael Assuncao. And really, that left just a handful of names – and Alcantara was one of them.

“The hard part on my side is, nobody knows who the heck he is and there’s nothing really to gain,” Faber said. “He’s ranked No. 13 in the (UFC) rankings, and I’m ranked No. 3. He’s a dangerous fight.”

Faber and Alcantara are in the same No. 3 and 13 positions in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie.com MMA bantamweight rankings, as well.

But rather than sit on the sidelines, Faber decided staying active and continuing to build a win streak is the best path toward another title shot.

“There wasn’t much out there for me,” Faber said. “So I can just be thankful I have a fight – I get paid when I have a fight, my name’s out there when I have a fight, I get to do what I love when I have a fight. So as long as I approach it like that – the thing to gain here is another win on my record and one step closer to getting that belt, which is my goal, and putting on a great show for the fans. That’s what this means.”

Faber has back-to-back submission wins over Menjivar and Jorgensen, the latter coming in April in the main event of the The Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale in Las Vegas. Alcantara, who less than three years ago was fighting at lightweight, got back in the win column for the first time in more than a year when he knocked out Iliarde Santos in May.

Right now, Faber would prefer to think of the fight as right down the middle even if, as he said, he couldn’t necessarily picture his opponent in his head when he got the offer for the fight.

And it likely is that level of concern over his opponent, no matter the name, that has kept him either with a belt around his waist, challenging for one or fighting to be a top contender again just about every fight for the past eight years.

“It’s a tough matchup,” Faber said. “I mean, the guy’s 28-4, and I’m 28-6. He’s fought at ’55, ’45 and ’35. He’s got solid standup and good jiu-jitsu. He’s got 12 finishes by knockout and 12 finishes by submission. It’s an even match.

“At this point in my career, I’m fighting to put on amazing fights to climb the way to the top. This guy, they think the world of. And even though nobody knows who he is, it’s going to be a very tough and competitive fight. But I’m going to win.”

But really, when it comes down to it, it probably didn’t matter what the name was on the other end of the phone when Faber got the call.

“I want to stay active. This is what I do, and I’m here to fight,” he said. “That’s why I’ve dedicated the last 10 years of my life to mixed martial arts. That’s what I do, so sign me up, and I’ll scrap.”

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