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So, what now? That's the question that many had on their minds after Urijah Faber was on the losing end of a referee stoppage at the 3:42 mark of the first round of UFC 169's main event.
The end came after UFC bantamweight champion Renan Barao landed a significant number of unanswered hammerfists to the head of a turtled Faber.
The loss ended Faber's four fight winning streak, a streak that began after Barao defeated Faber via unanimous decision at UFC 149.
The defeat dropped Faber's record to 30-7. All seven of those defeats have come in title fights. Three of those seven losses have come in pursuit of UFC bantamweight gold.
It's doubtful that Saturday's loss will see Faber tumble in the UFC's bantamweight rankings, where he is currently ranked No. 1. However, the path back to another title fight may be a lengthy one for Faber, especially if Barao continues to hold the UFC 135-pound title.
At the post-fight press conference, Faber was asked if he would entertain a return to the featherweight division. Faber, who has not fought at the 145-pound limit since dropping a unanimous decision to then WEC featherweight champion Jose Aldo at WEC 48 in April 2010, responded with, "I am sick of the weight cut, but I was also sick of fighting bigger guys at 145."
Faber said that his plan is to stay at bantamweight, but he did leave the door open for a temporary move to 145 pounds, "I'm going to stay at 135, but if there are some big fights at 145, let's hear what these guys have for me," Faber said. "I would like to do some fights that are interesting. I feel like I am getting better, my body feels great. I don't know, I don't want to go up to 145 permanently, but if there's something people want to see I might do that."
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