After making a triumphant return to the Octagon, following an injury-plagued hiatus from mixed martial arts (MMA), Dominick Cruz ousted T.J. Dillashaw in the UFC Fight Night 81 main event back in January to become the new 135-pound champion.
His win over Dillashaw helped set up a clash with old rival, Urijah Faber, who was quick to call out “The Dominator” after his title jaunt in Boston. Now 1-1 in tilts with Cruz, Faber could retire on top with a second victory over the Alliance MMA standout, so teammate Cody Garbrandt says.
In advance of their future title encounter, Cruz turned to his FOX Sports commentator self in order to preview their clash (via MMA Fighting):
“Faber was too scared to face T.J. — plain and simple. And so [Cruz] came back, and being the Cruz he is, beats the guy that Faber was too scared to face. Now Faber has a whole lot to say about Dominick, but Dominick is just gonna wax that ass again.”
Apparently, Cruz is adept at talking about himself in the third person. The prolific boxer and Team Alpha Male general have a longstanding rivalry dating back nine years.
Cruz lost the first meeting at 145 pounds in March 2007 via guillotine choke, but he got his revenge in a UFC 132 main event in July 2011. Multiple knee injuries played a part in the two not jostling for the bantamweight belt a second time.
Faber has since remained a top contender in the weight class, but has lost to elite fighters like Renan Barao and Frankie Edgar. Though he boasts an 8-3 record with Cruz out of the picture, the current titleholder feels that Faber has grown stagnate, while others, including Dillashaw, have passed him by.
“I don’t think he’s regressed,” Cruz said. “I don’t. I don’t think he’s gotten worse. I think that he’s the stayed the same and the game has progressed. That’s the difference. I think Faber is uncoachable. I think that anytime somebody goes in there to coach him, he ends up kicking them out, because he has to be the alpha. I think that’s been the downfall of his career.”
Indeed, Faber had multiple paths to a third UFC title shot, whether “Killashaw” held onto the belt or not. Cruz was happy to oblige once he had gold around his waist.
Anyone care to make a prediction as to who the winner of this trilogy contest might be?