Dominick Cruz thinks he is a terrible matchup for Jose Aldo.
Cruz vs. Aldo has been a fight many fans have wanted to see for years, especially as both were UFC champions. However, it never came to fruition, but with the two now fighting at bantamweight it is more realistic it can come together.
It was rumored that Cruz was offered to face Aldo at UFC 301 in Brazil, but it didn’t come to fruition, which the former bantamweight champ claims was because Aldo wanted an easier fight in his return.
“Since you brought up Aldo, I’ll start with I saw his words were that they offered him to fight me but he wanted somebody in the top five, or, ‘He’s not in the top five,’” Dominick Cruz said on the “Anik & Florian Podcast” (via MMAJunkie). “Is Jonathan Martinez in the top five? OK, so there’s that. And then, why would you want to be in the top five unless you’re going to fight for the title? Is he planning on renegotiating his contract for another six fights and going for the title?
“Or do you want to make sure you secure a win to become a free agent off a win instead of a loss when you’ve got to face the likes of me, which is a nightmare? I’m not saying Jonathan Martinez isn’t a nightmare, but the way that I saw it is, he showed up on the first weigh-in and then he showed up the second weigh-in apologizing for showing up to the first weigh-in and that right there showed me that the man was learning who he was against Jose Aldo before he even got in there,” Dominick Cruz continued.
Aldo did fight out his deal at UFC 301 as he beat Martinez by decision. Currently, it’s unclear if he will re-sign.
Dominick Cruz doubts Jose Aldo will be back in the UFC
Although Aldo got a big win at UFC 301 and is in the top-10 at bantamweight, he is right back in the title picture at 135lbs.
However, Dominick Cruz doesn’t think Aldo will re-sign with the UFC and will rather go back to boxing where he was having success.
“He’s not going to renegotiate,” Cruz said. “Why would he sign for another six fights in the UFC? He’s not going to do that. He’s going to go be a free agent.”
As for Cruz, he has not fought since August of 2022 when he got knocked out by Marlon Vera.