It’s On: Faber vs. Pulver

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By Michael DiSanto

On Wednesday afternoon, I was speaking with a venture capitalist about an investment in a privately held technology company in Silicon Valley, when he suddenly asked an unexpected question.

“Who do you think will win the big fight this weekend?”

The question threw me for a bit of a loop. I had never before discussed any type of sport fighting with him, so I didn’t know where he was going with the question. The first assumption, of course, was that he was referring to a boxing match, since that sport has a vast and storied history in America.

Yet, there is no major boxing event this weekend, so that couldn’t be it. I assumed, therefore, that he was referring to the UFC event that had occurred the prior weekend, so I informed him that the fights already occurred and that BJ Penn dominated Sean Sherk, Wanderlei Silva “axe murdered” Keith Jardine, and Tito Ortiz dropped what most believe was his final bout in the UFC.

“No, not those fights,” he replied rather quizzically, possibly even annoyed with me. The gentleman went on to say that he only recognized two of those names, and he certainly had no idea that a UFC event had just taken place in Las Vegas.

“Faber versus Pulver, the biggest fight in mixed martial arts history!”

I was shocked at first. Then it all made sense.

The WEC, which is now owned and operated by the same company that owns the Ultimate Fighting Championship, has pulled out all the marketing stops for what undoubtedly is the biggest fight in the history of the featherweight division. The campaign has been nothing short of brilliant. Intriguing commercials dominate VERSUS and Spike TV, two non-premium cable television channels. The storyline is legitimate – Urijah Faber, one of the best fighters in the world, pound for pound, defends his title against a Jens Pulver, a legend of the sport, who also happens to be undefeated at 145 pounds.

It is the perfect fight to raise the profile of the WEC yet another notch among casual onlookers, and one of real gifts of 2008 for hardcore fans.

So, what can fans expect when the referee signals for the action to begin?

Nothing short of non-stop action in a fight that isn’t likely to go the distance.

Not only is Faber (20-1) one of the best mixed martial artists in the world, pound for pound, but he is also one of the sport’s best finishers. The last time he needed to wait on the judges to determine the outcome of one of his fights was way back on September 24, 2004. Sixteen fights later, he seems to be the closest thing to an unbeatable fighter as we have across any division.

That is impressive, but Pulver’s career has been filled with even more excitement. “Lil Evil” (22-8-1), the UFC’s inaugural lightweight champion, hasn’t fought to a decision since August 8, 2002, knocking out or submitting every 145-lb fighter who dared stand opposite him inside the cage.

Suffice to say, the odds of Faber-Pulver lasting the full five rounds is slim to none, and slim doesn’t have a ticket to the event. But who will win and why?

On paper, Faber enjoys several distinct advantages. The 29-year-old is just now entering the peak of his athletic career. He mixes dominant wrestling skills forged from his time competing at UC Davis with elite ground-and-pound, tremendous submission defense and serviceable standup skills. But what really separates Faber from his contemporaries, including Pulver, is his explosiveness and speed.

The “California Kid” doesn’t know the meaning of the word “cruising.” From the moment the referee signals for the action to begin, he moves like a Ferrari in the red. Everything is full speed. Every movement occurs in the blink of an eye. And anyone with any background in sports knows that speed kills.

Faber’s speed is so disruptive to a fight because it puts tremendous pressure on his opponents to speed up their thought process and movements to try and deal with him, which is precisely the wrong thing to do because it leads to stupid mistakes. On the feet, guys begin to swing wildly, which opens the door for Faber to shoot in for a takedown. On the ground, it causes guys to hesitate with their movements because their mind is racing, which allows Faber to maintain complete control of the position while he explodes with elbows and fists in search of a TKO victory.

Faber will come out against Pulver looking to kick box only long enough to get a takedown. He knows better than to stand too long with the former professional boxer. Being the shorter fighter, Faber should not try to close the distance with the jab or stand and trade punches. To do that against a guy with Pulver’s punching power and crisp, clean punching technique is MMA suicide.

Instead, Faber will circle, popping in and out with kicks and the occasional explosive right hand trying to bait Pulver into over committing so that he can explode in for a takedown and get the fight to the ground. Faber knows that once the fight hits the ground, he has the advantage. His physical strength and tremendous hips will keep him in a dominant position, and his submission defense should be able to neutralize anything that Pulver tries to do from the bottom, particularly since Pulver does not possess an overly dangerous offensive guard.

Pulver knows that he cannot match Faber’s speed. He won’t try to do so. Instead, he will rely on his tremendous experience to remain calm and deal with the task at hand.

Whereas Faber’s career has unfolded mostly in smaller shows and arenas across the country, Pulver has been fighting his entire career on the sport’s biggest stages – the UFC and PRIDE – in front of massive crowds. His resume of opponents reads like a Who’s Who of MMA. Fighting Faber for the WEC 145-lb title in the Arco Arena in Sacramento, California is really just another day in the office for Lil Evil, while it is the biggest, most pressure-filled fight of Faber’s career.

Pulver wants to leverage that experience advantage by coming out and establishing right from the opening bell that he isn’t intimidated. He wants to exploit Faber’s early nervous energy by patiently working behind the jab and waiting for an opportunity to counter a lunging overhand right, a punch Faber throws often early in fights, with a laser-like left hand down the middle.

If the fight lasts beyond the first few minutes, Faber should relax and begin to get into his fighting flow. At that point, Pulver wants to devolve the action from a mixed martial arts contest into a true streetfight. Few fighters in the sport are more comfortable wading into the heart of darkness than Lil Evil. MMA Hell is a place that he calls home.

He can bring Faber into the heart of darkness by landing a few big punches early and then shocking everyone in the champion’s hometown by feinting with his left hand and shooting for a takedown. Faber’s only career loss came at the hands of Tyson Griffin, a bigger, stronger fighter. Pulver, who fought for years at 155 lbs, is also bigger and stronger than Faber. If he doesn’t get an early knockout, Pulver should look to leverage his size and strength advantage by putting Faber on his back and wearing him down with a steady diet of ground and pound.

Faber, who is a true 145-lb bully, is not comfortable fighting from his back for long periods because he isn’t accustomed to being in that position. Mix in a cut or two and Faber could begin to panic, particularly in front of a raucous hometown crowd that expects him to not only win but win big against Pulver. That could force Faber to take unnecessary chances in search of a quick submission or knockout win, and taking silly chances against Pulver typically leads to lights out.

At the end of the day, all signs point to Faber continuing his dominant 145-lb championship reign with a spectacular stoppage win over Pulver, either by ground-and-pound TKO or rear naked choke. This is a fight that could and should solidify Faber as one of the true elite fighters in the sport. In fact, I think that if the pair fought 10 times, Faber would win more times than not.

Nevertheless, I’m going to go out on a limb and pick Pulver, and I’m picking him by knockout. I like this matchup for him because he will be the much more relaxed fighter and Faber seems open to counter left hands early in his fights – Pulver’s bread-and-butter punch.

Whoever wins, this promises to be one of the most exciting fights of 2008. It is must-see TV for everyone – hardcore fans, casual onlookers and MMA first-timers – because this is one fight that won’t live up to the hype. It is going to far exceed it.

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