Urijah Faber is headed into Raf 08 with a matchup that even he treats as a size mismatch. The 46-year-old former MMA star will wrestle Arman Tsarukyan on Saturday in Philadelphia, after Real American Freestyle changed the bout from an earlier plan that had Faber facing Cayden Henschel.
Faber did not hide his reaction when the bout was first discussed. He said, “Are you guys sure you want me to wrestle him?” and added, “I mean, he’s a lot bigger than I am.” Tsarukyan fights at 155 pounds in the UFC but typically walks around in the 180-pound range, while Faber spent most of his career at 145 pounds and 135 pounds.
The size gap is only part of the appeal. Faber, who ended his MMA career with a knockout loss to Petr Yan in 2019, said Tsarukyan will have “a distinct size advantage over me,” along with “a youth advantage. And a couple other things.” Tsarukyan is 29, and Faber said the lesson of his own wrestling career was that none of that is enough to decide the result. “I was kind of a late bloomer in wrestling anyway, and what I realized is that none of that matters,” he said. “You just believe in yourself and your skill set and go out and have fun.”
The switch in opponents came after RAF wanted Henschel to move into a match against Lance Palmer. Faber said he had agreed to wrestle Henschel before the card changed, leaving him to draw Tsarukyan instead. Saturday’s bout at RAF 8, which is part of Real American Freestyle, gives the promotion a matchup built as much on contrast as competition: a retired 46-year-old dad and business owner against a younger UFC lightweight known for carrying far more weight than his fighting division suggests.
There is also a sharper edge around Tsarukyan than the usual exhibition-stage billing. Faber said, “I never got the warmest vibe from Arman, to be honest. He doesn’t seem like the nicest guy,” and recalled that “when I was out there last time, he kind of seemed to me like this rich, indifferent kid.” Tsarukyan punched Georgio Poullas after time expired in their first match and head-butted Dan Hooker at a UFC weigh-in, details that give Faber reason to expect friction before the opening whistle.
Faber said he hopes the lead-up stays civil, even if the press conference gets lively. “I’m looking forward to maybe having some interactions with him at the press conference and in the build-up, but I’m not the kind of guy that’s going to let people punk me or push me around either,” he said. “I think people pretty much know me, and know I’m a respectful guy, so I’m hoping there’s not an after-the-bell fight or anything. But I’ll probably bring my mouthpiece just in case.”
For Faber, the bout is a reminder that he is still willing to step into the kind of odd, high-profile assignment that can only happen when a career has already moved on from the cage. For Tsarukyan, it is a chance to meet a former star from another era on a mat that does not care about labels, only leverage.