Ex-poster boy Faber out to reclaim WEC crown

The 30-year-old fighter is not about to change his methods now that he’s headlining WEC’s biggest card to date in his hometown of Sacramento, Calif.

Faber was the featherweight champion for more than 2½ years during a time the organization was purchased by Zuffa, the parent company of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and slowly gained traction on cable television.

He has lost two of his past four fights, both to Mike Brown, but will have a chance to regain the belt when he takes on Jose Aldo in the main event of WEC’s first pay-per-view event Saturday.

“I haven’t toned down anything. I am 23-3, I’ve had two fights that I lost because of being wild and crazy, and I’ve had a ton of wins because I’m wild and crazy,” Faber said on a recent conference call. “So, of course, I keep refining my technique and getting better and better, and I’ll be aware of his tools for sure, but I don’t tone things down.”

Aldo’s tools are many. The 23-year-old Brazilian is 6-0 with six knockouts since entering the WEC in 2008.

His wins include an eight-second stoppage of Cub Swanson with a double flying knee and a second-round knockout of Brown behind a flurry of punches in November to claim the belt.

“I don’t think it’s any surprise what I’m going to do. Everybody sees my style of fighting,” Aldo said through a translator. “I come in aggressive, I come in explosive, and I’m going to come in always looking for the knockout and take whatever he can give me. It’s no surprise what I’m here to do.”

Faber is impressed by Aldo but says nothing can be assumed from Aldo’s victory over the man that beat Faber twice.

“Basically, this sport is about matchups, and I think I have the tools to beat Mike Brown. I feel like one mistake and some bad luck was really the difference in those fights. It’s not that I was outmatched by any means,” he said. “The bottom line is I’m just a whole different fighter than Mike Brown is, and this is a whole different matchup, and I’ve been training my whole life for this stuff. This is what I do, and I’m an able-bodied, top-level athlete, so I’m just ready to go out there and get a belt.”

Faber broke his right hand and dislocated his left thumb the second time he fought Brown. He missed seven months of action but looked healthy in his return — a third-round submission victory over Raphael Assuncao in January.

Faber says he’s ready to return to what he considers to be his rightful place atop the featherweight division.

“I can’t wait to fight. I’m itching to fight,” he said. “I just can’t wait to get in there and get that belt and fight a war.”

The night might be bigger for the organization than it is for its star. The WEC thinks it has put together its best card ever as it moves to pay per view for the first time, a move Faber thinks benefits himself and his employer.

“I think the (pay-per-view model) is what has allowed the sport of martial arts to grow, and I’m thinking that I want to prove that I can make some money and hopefully get some in return,” he said.

The card also features a lightweight title bout between Ben Henderson and Donald Cerrone. Henderson won a narrow decision over Cerrone last year in what was considered one of the sport’s fights of the year.

Also, Brown will meet Manny Gamburyan, and Anthony Njokuani will fight Shane Roller in a matchup of lightweights living in Las Vegas.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509.