UFC 181: Urijah Faber vs. Francisco Rivera booked for Dec. 6 in Las Vegas

Longtime Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bantamweight contender Urijah Faber will head back to the cage before the year is out for a 135-pound scrap against Francisco Rivera at the upcoming UFC 181 pay-per-view (PPV) event on Dec. 6, 2014 inside MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.

UFC announced the showdown on Wednesday night.

Faber (31-7) is 7-3 since crossing over from World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and is widely-considered the finest bantamweight in the world to never hold a UFC title. Despite his well-rounded skill set, "The California Kid" has been unable to replicate his success when it matters most.

In a championship fight.

That means Rivera (10-3) has his work cut out for him. After compiling three straight wins -- along with one no contest -- "Cisco" dropped a unanimous decision to Takeya Mizugaki at UFC 173 back in May. I'm sure an argument exists for the possibility of an upset, but I can't think of one at this time.

In the end, it appears Rivera was simply more exciting than this guy.

UFC 181 features a championship doubleheader in the main- and co-main events, with UFC Welterweight Champion Johny Hendricks making his first 170-pound title defense against the man he defeated to win it, Robbie Lawler, while UFC Lightweight Champion Anthony Pettis does the same -- almost 18 months removed from capturing 155-pound gold -- against Gilbert Melendez.

To check out the latest UFC 181: "Hendricks vs. Lawler 2" fight card and rumors click here.