Ricky Simon remembers watching Urijah Faber back when “The California Kid” used to compete for the WEC, where he had a run as the promotion’s featherweight champion.
Faber’s Veteran Presence
Simon spent much of his amateur run and early professional career while Faber continued to make a name for himself in the UFC as a top-ranked bantamweight who had a few title challenge attempts. When Faber retired from MMA in late 2016, Simon was a 7-1 pro looking to reach the UFC. Fast forward more than two-and-a-half years, and Faber, 40, is coming out of retirement to fight Simon, 26, who is now a top-15 bantamweight.