Tag: Dominick Cruz

Rising Contender Eyes Title Eliminator Bout With Dominick Cruz

One rising contender has his sights set on a fight with former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz. That contender is Raphael Assuncao, who was originally aiming for a trilogy bout with champion TJ Dillashaw for the 135-pound championship. He has every right to think he’s in title contention as he picked up three big wins […]

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One rising contender has his sights set on a fight with former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz.

That contender is Raphael Assuncao, who was originally aiming for a trilogy bout with champion TJ Dillashaw for the 135-pound championship.

He has every right to think he’s in title contention as he picked up three big wins over Aljamain Sterling, Marlon Moraes, and Matthew Lopez last year. However, the promotion has yet to grant him a spotlight with the champion.

Assuncao told MMA Fighting in a recent interview that the perfect booking right now would be against Cruz in the summer.

”I’ve already called him out in many interviews, but we don’t know what’s next for me yet,” Assuncao said. “The fight to make is me against Cruz. He’s the No. 2 in the ranking and I’m the No. 3.

That’s the right fight to make. Marlon (Moraes) and Jimmie (Rivera) are right below me and they are fighting next, so this is the fight to make — but he already ran from the fight, said he’s out indefinitely.”

Cruz is ready to get back inside of the Octagon after suffering his first loss in over eight years at UFC 207 by losing the title to Cody Garbrandt in a highly-entertaining affair.

The former champion was expected to return to action last December. However, that was not meant to be as he was forced out of a UFC 219 showdown with Jimmie Rivera due to a broken arm.

”I think he’s trying some kind of strategy, like waiting for someone to get injured and get a title fight on short notice,” Assuncao said. “I think that’s what he wants. But we have to make this fight to see who’s the next contender.”

”Even though he’s a former champion,” Assuncao said, “most of the guys he beat when he was champion have already retired. I’m the most consistent fighter in the division, he’s the most inconsistent fighter in the division,” Assuncao said. “We both want to fight for the title, so this is the perfect fight.”

”Dominick knows that this is the perfect fight to make, but I want to fight,” Assuncao said. “We’ll try to make it happen and stay active and prepared to fight when the opportunity comes. The more I fight, they are actually helping me [laughs]. It’s feeding me with experience, and when my time comes they can bring anyone.”

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Dominick Cruz Explains How Floyd Mayweather Has Chance In UFC

Former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is a believer in boxing legend Floyd Mayweather Jr. It’s been well documented that Mayweather continues to tease that he will make the transition from the world of boxing to the land of MMA. Mayweather has noted in previous interviews that he is going to take UFC welterweight champion […]

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Former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is a believer in boxing legend Floyd Mayweather Jr.

It’s been well documented that Mayweather continues to tease that he will make the transition from the world of boxing to the land of MMA.

Mayweather has noted in previous interviews that he is going to take UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley up on his offer and claimed their working agreement could begin in the near future.

He also plans to get a license to compete as a pro-MMA fighter. He plans to submit the paperwork to get licensed, which will likely be in Nevada.

Cruz made it known in a recent interview with TMZ that agrees with this move due to the fact that all Mayweather needs to do to win an MMA fight is to learn to stuff takedowns and keep the fight standing.

“If Floyd Mayweather can stop everyone in the UFC from taking him down, he has a chance of winning,” Cruz told TMZ Sports (transcript courtesy of Bloody Elbow). “Six to eight months isn’t gonna be enough. That’s just the way it is, I’m sorry.”

“Because he’s only got two tools. He doesn’t have the other eight. He doesn’t have grappling, he doesn’t have kicks, he doesn’t have knee and elbow strikes,” Cruz added. “And if he’s lucky, he can learn to defend a takedown in eight months, and that’s just real.”

“Focus on your takedown defense, no matter who you’re fighting,” Cruz said. “Don’t worry about nothing else, Floyd Mayweather. Just takedown defense.”

There have been rumblings of the UFC booking a rematch between Mayweather and McGregor. The UFC could also book Mayweather against CM Punk.

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Quote: TJ Dillashaw vs. Demetrious Johnson Will Happen In July

As a 35-fight MMA veteran, Muay Thai world champion and former UFC fighter Duane Ludwig spent 15 years competing in combat sports. After retiring from fighting in 2012, ‘Bang’ settled into a role as a full-time Muay Thai and MMA striking coach by propelling California’s Team Alpha Male to new heights in a short amount of […]

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As a 35-fight MMA veteran, Muay Thai world champion and former UFC fighter Duane Ludwig spent 15 years competing in combat sports. After retiring from fighting in 2012, ‘Bang’ settled into a role as a full-time Muay Thai and MMA striking coach by propelling California’s Team Alpha Male to new heights in a short amount of time.

In particular, current UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw found the most success from Ludwig’s tutelage. After he won the bantamweight title from Renan Barao at UFC 173 in 2014, Dillashaw and Ludwig moved their fight camp – amidst a highly-publicized spat with TAM that exists to this day – to Colorado where ‘Bang’ opened his own gym.

Since then, Dillashaw lost the title to Dominick Cruz in a close split decision in 2016, before winning it back against Cody Garbrandt after the feud started by Dillashaw and Ludwig moving away from TAM. A possible rematch between Dillashaw and Garbrandt was rumored for March 3’s UFC 222, but Dillashaw and his team were understandably much more interested in a champ vs. champ super fight with dominant flyweight king Demetrious Johnson, although no official details have been confirmed.

Speaking during an interview with Ariel Helwani on The MMA Hour today, Ludwig discussed why Dillashaw vs. Johnson is the much better fight:

“The better fight is against Demetrious Johnson, he is the only real big fight for TJ Dillashaw right now. Cody (Garbrandt) doesn’t deserve a rematch. (Cody) got knocked out in the second round, he hasn’t really earned that rematch. I know TJ got dropped in the first round but he came back and knocked Cody out.”

‘Bang’ also detailed why Dillashaw vs. Johnson was the best fight for ‘The Viper’ and why a rematch with Garbrandt was not.

The longtime coach said he understood that new UFC owners Endeavor were trying to make back their investment when featherweight champion Max Holloway was forced out of his headlining bout with Frankie Edgar, but he insisted the timing was wrong for Dillashaw given that he had just had a child, and also thought Garbrandt just didn’t deserve the fight:

“What we’ve got here is an entertainment business taking over a martial arts company. TJ just had a kid, and the timing wasn’t right for the Johnson fight at that time, but the company is trying to make their investment back, but TJ vs. Johnson has to happen. They must really like Cody right now because he doesn’t deserve that rematch.”

He then reiterated their team was looking for the super fight, and that it would happen this July during International Fight Week while touting Dillashaw’s standing as the best pound-for-pound fighter in the world in his mind:

“We are hunting for that Johnson superfight. TJ is not a big 135-pounder, he has to lift quite a lot make 135 pounds. He is basically between the two weight classes, he could defend both titles. We’ve trained from day one to be the best, our main goal is to see how good we can get him. It’s time to have the two best mixed martial artists in the lower weight classes meet and test TJ’s skill set again Demetrious. The fight with DJ will happen in July, at international fight week, and TJ will be the new 125-pound champion of the world.

“I think right now, TJ is the best fighter in the world regardless of weight class. Who knocked Cody out in the second round, anybody else? No, he ran through Renan Barao twice.”

Yet while it seems Ludwig is only focused on grabbing the highest-profile fight he can for his best student, ‘Bang’ also discussed a bigger picture view of his career as a martial arts coach, noting that he was excited to have a rewarding non-stressful career teaching. He’s apparently parlayed that into a seminar with Dillashaw and Bas Rutten in addition to a few other high-profile names, and wants to use that forum to pass on his wealth of fighting skill to those willing to learn:

“I’m super happy and I just love teaching martial arts. I focus on just teaching martial arts to martial artists, it’s not stressful, it’s pretty much rewardable and enjoyable. I have a huge seminar coming up this weekend.”

“I’ll be in New York this weekend with TJ Dillashaw, Bas Rutten, Andy Souwer, Chinzo Machida and also Shane Fazen. We are going to be doing a three-day seminar in New York City, teaching the best martial arts to all the people we can get together. It’s open to the public.

“I love being the Google of martial arts, finding the best martial artists and picking their brains and passing that information on to the people who are attending.”

So while Ludwig may be the in the media for his connection to Dillashaw, he also wanted to clarify that he doesn’t run an MMA team any longer, and wants to teach the current students at his MMA academy to be the best martial artists they can be:

“I want to help other people become better people and martial artists now. If I was running a fight team still, I would have the best fighters, but I’m running a martial arts academy and I try to teach them to be the best martial artists.”

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Urijah Faber: ‘Dominick Cruz & Michael Bisping Are F*cking Blind’

Urijah Faber isn’t too fond of Dominick Cruz and Michael Bisping. This past Saturday night (Feb. 24), Josh Emmett did battle with Jeremy Stephens. The featherweight bout served as the main event of UFC on FOX 28. The action was held inside the Am…

Urijah Faber isn’t too fond of Dominick Cruz and Michael Bisping. This past Saturday night (Feb. 24), Josh Emmett did battle with Jeremy Stephens. The featherweight bout served as the main event of UFC on FOX 28. The action was held inside the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida. Emmett was knocked out in the second […]

Daniel Cormier & Dominick Cruz Argue Over Controversial UFC on FOX 28 Main Event

You can add Daniel Cormier and Dominick Cruz to the list of people who have different views on the finish of the main event of UFC on FOX 28. As seen in the main event of the show that took place on Saturday night at Amway Center in Orlando, Florida on big FOX, Jeremy Stephens […]

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You can add Daniel Cormier and Dominick Cruz to the list of people who have different views on the finish of the main event of UFC on FOX 28.

As seen in the main event of the show that took place on Saturday night at Amway Center in Orlando, Florida on big FOX, Jeremy Stephens appeared to land an illegal knee to Josh Emmett while attempting to finish him that ultimately lead to a second-round knockout.

During that sequence, there were also two elbows that Stephens threw that landed to the back of Emmett’s head.

Many people believe that those shots could have been ruled illegal blows.

However, referee Dan Miragliotta did not react to the potential fouls at the moment but instead let the action continue.

The current UFC light heavyweight champion believes that Stephens “got away with one” in finishing Emmett without anything being called illegal.

On the flip side, former UFC bantamweight champion said he didn’t feel like the knee landed. In the event that it did land, then Emmett would have been badly rocked by it.

Cormier and Cruz are not only two of the best fighters in the world but also like to talk and do it very well.

During the post-fight show on FOX Sports 1, they argued about the finish of the fight (transcript courtesy of MMA Fighting).

“It didn’t hurt Josh Emmett, but it doesn’t have to,” Cormier countered. “As long as it hits your opponent, it is an illegal shot. It doesn’t have to hurt Josh Emmett. Dom said something to the affect of, that was a nasty knee, if it landed it would have been over immediately. It doesn’t have to be over immediately. As long as it makes contact, it is an illegal blow and it’s over.”

Cruz responded: “Where did it make contact? … Where did it land? It ducks.”

“It touches!” Cormier responded.

Cruz asks, “Where does it touch, bro?”

“Don’t make it seem like I am against Jeremy Stephens, because I am not,” Cormier said. “That’s contact, boys!”

Cruz replied: “You’re wrong.”

Cruz went on to note that it can’t be an illegal knee if the referee “doesn’t call it illegal. Then don’t call it illegal.”

“Dominick, I am just telling you that you’re wearing glasses, you can admit, hey your boy got away with one,” Cormier said. “It’s like me robbing a bank and getting away with it. You can’t be mad at me.”

“I disagree,” Cruz said. “You’re wrong. He missed.”

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Urijah Faber Goes Off On ‘Illegal Knee’ From Jeremy Stephens

Jeremy Stephens scored a third consecutive win when he brutally knocked out rising star Josh Emmett (highlights here) in the main event of last night’s (Sat., February 24, 2018) UFC on FOX 28 from the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, but it didn’t come without some controversy. There was a debate whether or not Stephens […]

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Jeremy Stephens scored a third consecutive win when he brutally knocked out rising star Josh Emmett (highlights here) in the main event of last night’s (Sat., February 24, 2018) UFC on FOX 28 from the Amway Center in Orlando, Florida, but it didn’t come without some controversy.

There was a debate whether or not Stephens landed an illegal knee, and then possibly a series of illegal elbows, during a hectic finishing sequence where after “Lil’ Heathen” dropped Emmett with a left hook. Referee Dan Miragliotta never stepped in to declare the knee or the elbows illegal, but Emmett and his Team Alpha Male teammates vehemently disagree.

At least one and most likely two of the vicious elbows did hit Emmett in the back of the head.

After the win, FOX Sports 1 post-fight show co-hosts Dominick Cruz, who’s a teammate of Stephens’ at Alliance MMA, and Michael Bisping argued the knee barely grazed Emmett and didn’t ultimately have any bearing on the outcome.

Team Alpha Male coach Urijah Faber disagrees. “The California Kid” blasted Cruz and Bisping about the knee, which was more in question than the elbows given the rapid sequence, on Instagram shortly after the fight by calling it clearly illegal:

“Dominick Cruz and Michael Bisping are f*cking blind. That was a knee to the back of the head. An illegal knee to the illegal back of the head. Give me a friggin’ break. Congratulations to Stephens. He fought a good one.”

It’s at least a little surprising to hear Faber not mention the elbows, which did appear to be much more egregious upon replay review.

Emmett will most likely appeal the loss before the Florida commission presiding over the event, but he could be fighting an uphill battle on this one.

Did longtime ref Miragliotta clearly drop the ball in more than one place in Orlando last night, or was did it all unfold too fast to discern the strikes?

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