Former WEC Featherweight Champion “The California Kid” Urijah Faber has suffered a knee injury in training and has been forced to withdraw from the upcoming WEC 50 card on August 18th. Faber had been scheduled to make his bantamweight debut against Takeya Mizugaki.
Faber announced the news earlier today on his Twitter account and stated the injury occurred during training on Monday. MMAjunkie.com has since reported that Mizugaki will most likely be removed from the card and that a replacement opponent for the Japanese contender will not be sought.
Faber (23-4-0) quickly became one of the most recognisable faces in the WEC after capturing the promotion’s Featherweight Championship and he held onto the title until a November 2008 bout with Mike Brown. Faber was stopped in less than half a round and was forced to work back towards a rematch. That fight came at WEC 41 last June and, despite showing huge heart in battling through a broken right hand and additional injuries to his left hand, Faber came up short again.
After a big victory over Raphael Assuncao in January, Faber was given one more shot at the WEC Featherweight Championship, this time held by Jose Aldo. Faber was soundly beaten and crippled by an endless series of leg kicks from his opponent and came out on the wrong end of a lopsided decision. Following the loss, the California standout opted to drop down to 135 pounds, but his bantamweight debut will have to wait due to the injury, though he will not need to undergo surgery.
(Photo Credit: Sherdog.com)