Bloody Elbow presents a preview of UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz in our fight card primer series. Here we look at the main event: T.J. Dillashaw vs. Dominick Cruz for the UFC Bantamweight title.
In the main event at UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs. Cruz, UFC Bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw (12-2 MMA; 8-2 UFC) takes on challenger Dominick Cruz (20-1 MMA; 3-0 UFC). This five round title fight caps off the four fight UFC Fight Night main card. The UFC rankings have Cruz as the #1 contender in the division, with champion Dillashaw ranked at #4 on the Pound for Pound list. UFC Fight Night: Dillashaw vs Cruz airs live from Boston this Sunday, January 17. The main card airs on Fox Sports 1 with a fight time of 10:00 p.m. ET / 7:00 p.m. PT, with the prelims starting at 8:00 p.m. ET also on Fox Sports 1 and 6:00 p.m. ET on Fight Pass.
In Dillashaw vs. Cruz you have an absolutely tremendous, must-watch fight. This is two true mixed martial artists, both experts at all phases of the game. It’s also, in a way, a unification fight, as Cruz is the former champion who never lost the belt. Hardcore fans have been excited about this one for a long time – Sunday night it finally happens.
How do these two stack up?
Dillashaw: 29 years old | 5’6″ | 68″ reach
Cruz: 30 years old | 5’8″ | 68″ reach
What have these two done recently?
Dillashaw: W – Renan Barao (TKO) | W – Joe Soto (TKO) | W – Renan Barao (TKO)
Cruz: W – Takeya Mizugaki (TKO) | W – Demetrious Johnson (UD) | W – Urijah Faber (UD)
How did these two get here?
TJ Dillashaw won the Bantamweight title in a huge upset in 2014. He’s since successfully defended that belt twice, with all three championship fight wins coming via late stoppage. But the big discussion about the champ these days is all about his training camp. The longtime member of Team Alpha Male (where TJ got his start in MMA) bonded with Duane “Bang” Ludwig when Bang was the TAM coach. The results of that partnership have been obvious as Dillashaw has evolved from wrestler to one of the best strikers in the game today. Now, TJ is full time with Bang, banned from Team Alpha Male, labeled a “snake” by Conor McGregor, and looking towards a possible grudge match with former mentor Urijah Faber. And one of the top 5 pound for pound fighters on the planet.
Dominick Cruz has had one of the hardest roads back to title contention in MMA history. The final WEC Bantamweight champion (and therefore the first UFC Bantamweight champion) defended the combined titles 4 times. He never lost the belt in the ring, but was forced to vacate after an injury. Which was followed by another injury. Then another, and another, and another. All told, Cruz ended up being out of action for a 3 year stint from 2011-2014, then had one fight back (an amazing 61 second KO of Mizugaki), and has since been out for another 16 months. Undefeated at Bantamweight, with his lone career loss coming at Featherweight back in 2007 (to Urijah Faber), Cruz has a unique and very effective striking game, plus an often overlooked wrestling game, which he has used flawlessly as a champion in the past.
Why should you care?
Because this is going to be an amazing fight stylistically. These are two supremely talented technicians and I can not wait to see it play out. Plus it will determine who the king of the division truly is.