{"id":350332,"date":"2020-05-15T08:03:52","date_gmt":"2020-05-15T15:03:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/?p=350332"},"modified":"2020-05-15T08:03:52","modified_gmt":"2020-05-15T15:03:52","slug":"urijah-faber-could-potentially-fight-at-ufc-on-espn-8","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/ufc\/urijah-faber-could-potentially-fight-at-ufc-on-espn-8\/","title":{"rendered":"Urijah Faber could potentially fight at UFC on ESPN 8"},"content":{"rendered":"

Fans that tuned in for this morning’s UFC on ESPN 8 weigh-ins<\/a> were greeted by an unexpected face: Urijah Faber’s.<\/p>\n

Despite not being scheduled to fight on the Jacksonville, Florida event, Faber stepped onto the scale and weighed in just below the lightweight limit. Normally, this would suggest Faber is on-tap to replace any lightweights scheduled to compete on the card in the event of a last-minute shakeup. However, the UFC on ESPN on 8 lineup doesn’t feature any lightweight bouts.<\/p>\n

So what exactly is going on?<\/p>\n

Apparently, Faber weighed in on the off-chance he needs to replace his pupil, Chinese bantamweight contender Song Yadong, who is scheduled to fight Marlon “Chito” Vera in a short-notice featherweight fight on the main card. Song could reportedly be deemed unable to fight due to a lingering visa issue, in which case the UFC and the overseeing athletic commission will scramble to see if a short-notice fight between Vera and Faber is doable \u2014 despite their gap in weight.<\/p>\n

ESPN’s Ariel Helwani has the details:<\/p>\n

\n

Urijah Faber made a surprise appearance at the weigh-ins today. He weighed in at 153.5. The reason he did so is because Song Yadong, who weighed 145.5, has a potential visa issue that may preclude him from fighting tomorrow. They are trying to sort it out. Faber standing by.<\/p>\n

\u2014 Ariel Helwani (@arielhelwani) May 15, 2020<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n