It looks like Urijah Faber will be traveling due East to take on Japan’s own Masanori Kanehara at UFC Fight Night 52. Faber will not only be welcoming Kanehara to the UFC, but will also be having his first fight outside of America.
Faber, a former WEC Featherweight champion, has become a perennial number one contender. In his eleven year MMA career, Faber has only lost one non-title fight, his other six losses have all come with the title on the line. In his most recent title quest Faber was riding a four-fight winning streak which earned him another shot at the UFC Bantamweight title; but he would fall short against former champion Renan Barao.
Following the loss to Barao at UFC 169, Faber would go on to submit Alex Caceres at UFC 175, maintaining his position as a title contender in the Bantamweight division.
As for the newcomer, Kanehara has been on a roll, he recently held a six-fight winning streak with all of those victories coming via stoppage (3 KO/TKO, 3 Sub) until being disqualified in his last fight. In addition, Kanehara’s most substantial victories have come over Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto and Chan Sung Jung, also known as “The Korean Zombie.”
UFC Fight Night 52 will take place on September 20th in Tokyo, Japan at the Saitama Super Arena. In addition to Faber vs. Kanehara, the event will be headlined by a bout of heavy-hitting Heavyweights in Mark Hunt vs. Roy Nelson. It will also feature bouts between Miesha Tate and Rin Nakai, as well as Myles Jury vs. Japanese MMA legend Takanori Gomi.