As patriarch of the revolutionary Team Alpha Male camp, founder of the A1 Combat promotion and one of the first true mixed martial arts superstars to ply his trade below 155 pounds, Urijah Faber was ahead of his time in many respects. “The California Kid” turns 45 on May 14.
Faber wrestled collegiately at the University of California-Davis, where he was a two-time national qualifier. He transitioned to MMA in 2003, won 21 of his first 22 professional bouts, captured the King of the Cage bantamweight championship and ultimately moved on to World Extreme Cagefighting, where he held the featherweight title from March 17, 2006 to Nov.