Tag: Dominick Cruz

Former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz has announced he intends to continue fighting despite suffering defeat against Henry Cejudo at UFC 249. Cruz ended his almost four-year layoff this past weekend and challenged ‘Triple C’ for his 135lb belt.

The fight ended in a controversial fashion after Cejudo dropped Cruz with a knee in the second round before swarming for the finish. Referee Keith Peterson stepped in and waved off the fight a bit too prematurely for the liking of ‘The Dominator’ and many fight fans. Cruz later shared his belief the referee was incompetent and smelled like “alcohol and cigarettes.”

Dominick Cruz Tells ESPN He Will Fight Again

“Yeah, I’m in this. I just need to get in there and get some more rounds. Let these legs flush, move them around,” Cruz told Ariel Helwani. “I’m healthy, I love feeling lethal, and right now, I am a lethal person still. I just love being healthy. It feels so good to be healthy. Even after a fight, to feel healthy like I do, it’s different. I’m usually used to going into these five-round wars and I’m used to double the amount of damage, triple the amount of damage that I took. Over five rounds you just accumulate a lot, even with good decision making you accumulate a lot on your feet and your hands. None of that is taking place. My face is fine, I barely got hit on my face. It’s just part of it. Loss is part of this thing.”

“I feel healthy and I don’t feel broken, I’m here. I’m going to get back to the gym and train and then move from there. I’ve got people that can make this move anytime we want,” he explained. “It’s not going to be hard to find people that want to fight me. It’s not going to be hard for me to find a fight. So, I think it’s needless to say you will be hearing from me in some way shape, or form again.” (Transcribed by BJPenn.com)

Who do you want to see Dominick Cruz fight next?

Dominick Cruz has levelled some pretty big accusations at referee Keith Peterson following his controversial TKO defeat to Henry Cejudo at UFC 249.

Cruz got dropped by a powerful knee in round two of his fight against ‘Triple C’. The bantamweight champion swarmed landing several unanswered shots before the referee stepped in and waved the fight off. ‘The Dominator’ although eating shots was clearly working back up to his feet at the time of the stoppage, which he immediately took issue with.

Cruz continued to protest Peterson’s stoppage while speaking on the UFC 249 post-fight show on ESPN, he said.

“That was an early stoppage, 100 percent – I’m positive of it. I wish there was a way to keep these refs a little more responsible sometimes. The guy smelled like alcohol and cigarettes, so who knows what he was doing. Definitely (he did). I wish they drug tested them.”

Cruz went on to say he’d have preferred to have Herb Dean calling his fight and wondered out loud if he even had the ability to pass on a referee who had been appointed by the commission, he said.

“I know Herb Dean is good. He’s one of the best refs. I immediately when I saw that ref I was like, ‘Man, is there a way to veto a ref and get a new one?’ I wonder that.” 

While clearly still annoyed by the early stoppage Cruz ultimately accepted responsibility for taking a big shot and giving the referee a call to make, he said.

“I’m not a guy to make excuses. If you put yourself in the position for the ref to mess something up in a stoppage, then you do so.”

Kept it @dominickcruz. Love to see it! Was a robbery tonight! #ufc249 @danawhite pic.twitter.com/RiobpHfS9s

— Jager5000 (@Jager5ooo) May 10, 2020

Do you think Dominick Cruz is right to protest referee Keith Peterson’s stoppage of his UFC 249 title fight against Henry Cejudo?