The Ultimate Fighting Championship on May 7 announced that bantamweight titleholder Dominick Cruz had torn a knee ligament while training, necessitating his removal from a rubber match with longtime rival Urijah Faber. It was a pill neither man wanted to swallow.
Beyond Cruz and his inner circle, perhaps no one was more disappointed with the cancellation than Faber, who had designs on avenging his July 2011 defeat to “The Dominator.” Instead, Cruz faced reconstructive surgery and a lengthy rehabilitation process. Faber was met with uncertainty, his mantle still noticeably void of the sport’s biggest prize: a UFC championship.
A little less than two weeks later, the promotion pitted “The California Kid” against once-beaten Nova Uniao standout Renan “Barao” Pegado for the interim UFC bantamweight crown. The two will meet in the UFC 149 headliner on Saturday at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The situation was less than ideal for Faber, but, with Cruz stuck on the sidelines, he had no choice but to move forward.
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