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View Full Version : UFC FIGHT NIGHT DILLASHAW V. CRUZ JAN 17TH, 2016



Nash Diesel
December 21st, 2015, 2:05 PM
http://s3-media4.fl.yelpcdn.com/ephoto/UBo-YJLHSKtr3ErvDtkfhA/o.jpg


JANUARY 17TH, 2016
TD GARDENS
BOSTON, MA


Sorry I didn't go as detailed with the thread but once I saw this image I figured, shit this will be way easier.

What a solid January we're getting from the UFC. Cruz has had so much time off and the last time we saw him he looked incredible, a savage! Then you have a fucking dream match in Pettis v. Alvarez, Pettis looking to redeem himself after an uncharacteristic like showing against RDA where he was dominated like no one has ever come close to doing before. HW banger with Meathead v. Browne.

I'm really excited to see Cruikshank fight, he's always entertaining. Plus another favorite of mine, Killer B Ben Saunders v. Patrick Ole Ole Ole Cote. Honestly this looks like it's going to be a really good free fight card.

The one thing I will bitch about is why the UFC continues to put Mighty Mouse on ppv, but they don't put a fight like Cruz v. Dillashaw on ppv? Obviously timing is everything, there's a ppv 2 weeks before this but shit I would've put this title fight under Lawler/Condit and moved Arlovski-Stipe as the headilner for this show. Mighty Mouse, great fighter, under appreciated, but think about how poorly some of the ppv cards do with him as a headliner and he headlines quite a bit. Even with a stacked undercard it's sometimes a poor gate and ppv buyrate.

Spedizzo
December 21st, 2015, 3:50 PM
- Dillashaw vs. Cruz is an epic fight that I don't think people are excited enough about. Cruz was pretty much the Jose Aldo of his division (although his nickname was The Decisionator) for a long time, but unfortunately injuries have really screwed up his career. Cruz in his last fight beat the piss out of Mizugaki in 1 minute with a knock out, seemingly reinvigorating his career. However.... he would soon be on the shelf again.

While on the shelf, it seemed like the Bantamweight Division would be under the Renan Barao era.... until Dillashaw owned him twice. Dillashaw is now looking really good and is seemingly in the best shape of his career. He just left Team Alpha Male, so it will be interesting to see how he looks under Elevation Fight Team without all of his boys. If you asked me who would win this fight 2 years ago, I would definitely have said Cruz. But with this long lay off and Dillashaw peaking, I am predicting that Dillashaw wins by TKO in round 4.



- Anthony Pettis vs. Eddie Alvarez - I have never been overly impressed with Eddie Alvarez. I thought he should have lost the Gilbert Melendez fight where his face looked like a monster from The Hills Have Eyes. Anthony Pettis shocked the world when he was tossed around like a child against Rafael dos Anjos... but Pettis has always been derailed by injuries, and Pettis has a tendency to look like a worldbeater for a few fights, then lays an egg (anyone remember him getting sat on by Clay Guida?) We have also come to realize as of late what an absolute monster Rafael dos Anjos is.

If Eddie Alvarez comes into the fight with the strict gameplan of winning by decision, in a 3 round fight, he can definitely pull it off utilizing wrestling and takedowns... but I think Anthony Pettis will be too much in most of the standup exchanges. I take Anthony Pettis by unanimous decision.



- Travis Browne vs. Matt Mitrione - I believe Travis Browne is the better overall mixed martial artist in this fight. Travis Browne I thought was one of the darkhorses of the heavyweight division up until he had a tough fight against Werdum and decided to go rock em' sock em' robot with Arlovski resulting in his demise. Matt Mitrione is a tank and has power.

This is another case of two big ass heavyweights where anything can happen. Travis Browne probably should win, but I am going to play Devil's Advocate and say that the Ronda Rousey distraction, and the heavyweight division x-factor will lead to a Matt Mitrione win by KO in round 2.

Seanny One Ball
December 21st, 2015, 5:19 PM
If Matt Mitrione beats Travis Browne I'll eat my hat

thetony
December 21st, 2015, 9:16 PM
Bit off topic, but how was Cruz on the mic the other night? Was able to catch the fights but didn't have any sound for the majority.

It's felt like forever since Pettis has last had a fight.

Nash Diesel
December 22nd, 2015, 10:40 AM
Bit off topic, but how was Cruz on the mic the other night? Was able to catch the fights but didn't have any sound for the majority.

It's felt like forever since Pettis has last had a fight.

As awkward as he has come across in the past doing interviews or on TUF, he is actually a great analyst. I would put him up there with Frank Mir in terms of solid MMA fighters who do commentary.

Spedizzo
December 22nd, 2015, 11:44 AM
Cruz is kind of an arrogant dick as a fighter when trash talking, but as analyst he is one of the best at dissecting fighters.

Nash Diesel
December 22nd, 2015, 12:00 PM
lol yep. On TUF he was trying to talk shit toward Faber and it came off like when Rousey was stumbling over her words trying to get angry toward Holm at the weigh ins lol. Shocked DC didn't just go "I know you are but what am I!?!"

Mik
December 23rd, 2015, 6:10 AM
Got my fingers crossed for Cruz here. I've never taken to Dillashaw.

Nash Diesel
December 23rd, 2015, 10:26 AM
Got my fingers crossed for Cruz here. I've never taken to Dillashaw.

I'd like to see Cruz win BUT the one giant negative is, can he stay healthy? I don't want him to blast through TJ, and then be gone for another year or 2. I don't know if he's over training or his body is just breaking down. He never really takes a lot of damage, his fights aren't brutal, I mean out of all the fights I've seen of his, his last was the only time I've seen him finish someone and it was great...but then he was gone again for a year lol. Fights for 60 seconds, then out for year...Great analyst though, he's definitely got a future at the booth.

Mik
December 23rd, 2015, 1:57 PM
His style offers a lot of opportunities to damage the legs though. It's all about quick turns and pivots, fast footwork and explosive movement.

Spedizzo
December 23rd, 2015, 3:21 PM
I'd like to see Cruz win because of the nostalgia effect.

But I kind of dig the new trend of 99% of Bantamweight and Featherweight fights no longer going to decision since the era of Faber/Cruz.

Nash Diesel
December 23rd, 2015, 3:23 PM
Poor Cruz is now in the nostalgia category.

Spedizzo
December 23rd, 2015, 3:30 PM
I only got into UFC during Lesnar/Mir 1 in 2008 (although I would later go back and watch a lot of older shit). I remember seeing some clips later in the year of Cruz and then watching Cruz in WEC around that time... so yeah... he is nostalgic for me.

Nash Diesel
December 23rd, 2015, 3:56 PM
I only got into UFC during Lesnar/Mir 1 in 2008 (although I would later go back and watch a lot of older shit). I remember seeing some clips later in the year of Cruz and then watching Cruz in WEC around that time... so yeah... he is nostalgic for me.

Shit I'm agreeing with ya, the dude has been out of action for the past 3-4 years pretty much he's practically a myth lol. Idk, personally I think he's kind of a tool, but I do like him at the booth. His reason for not liking Faber, I believe it was due to not being on the WEC promotional poster for their first fight....or maybe it was Urijah signed a promotional poster and his sig went on Cruz's body, can't remember, it was a reach to try to sell himself.

Spedizzo
January 5th, 2016, 4:43 PM
The closer to this fight, the more I think Cruz is going to get absolutely wrecked and I hope its not the case.

Cruz, who only had 1 fight in the last 5 years is going up against the guy who just molested Renan Barao, twice?

Holy shit.

Fanny Batter
January 5th, 2016, 7:59 PM
Cruz winning for me would be the sports all time great comeback story. This is a man who has had his athletic prime obliterated by injuries, clocking up 61 seconds of fighting in the last 4 and a 1/4 years. A career high payday taken from him with one surgery, his title taken from him after another. He finally gets back in their spectacularly and again gets injured before he can get rolling after it. Few men come back from 1 ACL surgery the same. NO MAN returns from what Cruz has gone through. If he pulls it off he's an all time great.

Alas, I can't look past a Dillashaw win. His style is hard to establish a rhythm against particularly with ring rust. I see him putting Cruz on the defensive early and edging a close fight down the stretch as his leg and body work limits Cruz's movement.

Spedizzo
January 6th, 2016, 9:53 AM
I would be surprised if this fight is competitive or even goes to a decision. I would be absolutely shocked if Cruz wins. I agree in thinking that Dillashaw will put on the pressure and tag Cruz early, having him on the defensive and just control the fight. Cruz is world class, but a 4+ year absence against someone who is just about world class himself is too hard to look past.

If Cruz can somehow survive the early rounds, I don't think he can keep up the usual pace in the championship rounds against someone like Dillashaw and the pressure he brings.

I would also be elated if Cruz wins- and this is coming from someone who could not care less about watching a Cruz fight 5 years ago.

What shocks me is how small of a favorite Dillashaw opened up as in the sportsbook over Cruz. I would have expected him in the -200 to -300 range. Dillashaw opened at -155 and is currently at -140. :shifty:

My mind says bet Dillashaw at that price, but I don't want to bet against someone who I really want to win so I may end up betting Cruz, but those odds are shit and very suspect IMO. Either the general public is pounding Dominick Cruz, or Vegas thinks that even though Cruz has been gone for a long time, his skills are superior.

But I would think the general public is on Dillashaw for a few reasons. #1, Cruz is forgotten by a lot of newer fans. And #2, MMA math says that Dillashaw beat the crap out of Barao twice, who is the guy who beat the crap out of Faber twice, who is the guy who beat Cruz in his prime and gave Cruz his most competitive fights.

:confused:

Nash Diesel
January 6th, 2016, 10:26 AM
I think it was a mistake for the UFC to give Cruz a title shot. If he wins, there's a 90% chance he will get injured and then we'll have to deal with the same shit. He's not a draw, so it's not like they're looking at it as "oh we need to make sure we get Cruz in a title fight before it's too late so we bank on the money". It's not even on ppv, and the card has enough quality fighters on it to sell itself at the gate. But I guess who else is there? Other than Faber, nobody. Faber's for sure getting the winner, the story writes itself with both guys. So really my only reservation is, if Cruz wins, can he remain healthy long enough to get to the next fight and the fight after that? Maybe he calls it a day if he beats Dillashaw AND Urijah. Barao could also be a possibility, but he might think about moving up to 145 regardless if Jose is there or not.

To be honest the fight I'm looking forward to the most is the co-main, Pettis v. Alvarez.

OD50
January 6th, 2016, 12:37 PM
Ditto. :yes:

Eddie Brock
January 6th, 2016, 6:10 PM
People will finally realize that although their styles look similar those guys have two completely different styles of fighting. I think the level of skill and technique we'll see in that fight will be off the charts, and I can't wait. I have Cruz winning for sure. Because Dillashaw does most of his damage when fighters are trying to fire back he'll have some trouble finding openings against Cruz. His defense is more important than his offense. The dude doesn't get hit. He understands feints so well that he barely bites on them.

Dillashaw likes to angle out, switch stances, taking away the counter you thought was there... Cruz understands this and won't attempt to counter every shot Dillashaw throws, and this will make it tough to actually hit Cruz. He doesn't feint with strikes, he feints with movement which makes it hard to tell if he's just moving or trying to attack. He kills two birds with one stone. He likes to move into his opponent's power shot, and in a strange way, he has figured out a way to take away his opponent's power by doing just that. He's able to make them overextend which takes away power.

So, instead of feinting a jab making you want to counter with a straight, he counters you right away. And if you don't hit him now you're open to his own strikes. That's just one aspect of what Cruz does. I just believe he'll be a better counter striker, he'll mix in his grappling better than Dillashaw, and his conditioning will be on point as well. In my opinion this fight will be about Dillashaw figuring out Cruz, and I don't think he'll really be able to do it.

Mik
January 6th, 2016, 7:07 PM
I think that Cruz will batter Dillashaw and make him look overrated and complete a great comeback story and make people look foolish for saying that Dillashaw was the new Cruz when in reality he was just a pretender.

Thats what I'm hoping anyway. It's a lot to ask when he's been out so much, it's near impossible to not have huge ring rust and conditioning issues and it's highly possible that the game has simply moved on and he might look incredibly limited now.

son_of_foley
January 6th, 2016, 7:42 PM
Think I might be in Boston for this. Tempted to go.

Nash Diesel
January 7th, 2016, 10:14 AM
I think that Cruz will batter Dillashaw and make him look overrated and complete a great comeback story and make people look foolish for saying that Dillashaw was the new Cruz when in reality he was just a pretender.

Thats what I'm hoping anyway. It's a lot to ask when he's been out so much, it's near impossible to not have huge ring rust and conditioning issues and it's highly possible that the game has simply moved on and he might look incredibly limited now.

It's definitely possible and I'm not saying Mizugaki is a beast like say Barao, but Cruz waxed him in a minute, first time I'd ever seen Cruz finish anyone and that was after a 2 year layoff. I don't think he'll run through Dillashaw but I don't know if he'll look any different. Again the only reason I really don't want him to win is because his health is unpredictable, very very unpredictable. Who wants to be an interim champion and then have this guy waltz in a year or 2 later and get a title shot? Thank God the division isn't exactly deep.

Spedizzo
January 7th, 2016, 10:58 AM
Think I might be in Boston for this. Tempted to go.

I would definitely go.

UFC events are an awesome experience live. This card is pretty stacked. Saunders/Cote and Boetsch/Herman have FOTN potential. You have two big heavyweights going at it. Anthony Pettis coming off losing his Welterweight belt, and Dominick Cruz making a return after 4 years to take on a guy who battered someone in Renan Barao who people thought was a world beater.

I just sounded like Joe Rogan.

I wish this card was in my area. I have been to 3 fights- Florian/Gomi Fight Night in Charlotte, Jon Jones/Shogun in NJ, and Fedor/Bigfoot Strikeforce in NJ. All have been amazing experiences.

Nash Diesel
January 11th, 2016, 4:21 PM
Less than a week away from this banger, definitely different watching UFC on a Sunday night.

Seanny One Ball
January 11th, 2016, 5:08 PM
Anthony Pettis coming off losing his Welterweight belt.

I just sounded like Joe Rogan.



You sounded a lot more like the immortal Bill Wallace.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzynOCnAVqU

Spedizzo
January 11th, 2016, 5:48 PM
I don't know why this is on a Sunday night. Is it cause of the NFL playoffs? Because it's on Saturday + Sunday night.

Would have much rather this be on a Friday night if that was the case.

MLK day is on Monday though and I am off, so I am OKAY with that.


Yes, Anthony Pettis didn't lose his Welterweight belt... I get it... that is more of a Mike Goldbergism than anything.

Kdestiny
January 18th, 2016, 12:47 AM
Anyone watching this?

It was on after football by the way

Percussion
January 18th, 2016, 12:50 AM
Watching someone try and latch and grind on someone else sucks. Of course the answer to that is don't let 'em.

Kdestiny
January 18th, 2016, 1:42 AM
Really great fight there. Crazy work by both.

I had it 48-47 Cruz

TheRockSays
January 18th, 2016, 1:51 AM
that fight was bananas.... couldn't even imagine having to hand in an official scorecard. but yeah i had it the same as kdestiny.

Percussion
January 18th, 2016, 2:03 AM
Wish T.J. had kept a few more of the low leg kicks in mind earlier in the fight.

Kdestiny
January 18th, 2016, 2:17 AM
Later on he had some huge strikes, but Cruz had TJ a bit flustered early on and it kinda showed

Nash Diesel
January 18th, 2016, 10:32 AM
I had it for Cruz, but I'll be honest when I saw him limping around and Lorenzo in there with Dana talking to Cruz all I thought was if this fool is injured, and even if the scorecards say it's for Cruz, please just work some gangster magic and announce TJ as the winner lol. A guy who's had 3 ACL surgeries and 2 fights in 4 years as the champion of a division scares me as it is. But all in all, it was a really fun fight. I read someone say that TJ looked like he was head hunting and I couldn't agree more, I think that was his downfall. Cruz had some takedowns that didn't amount to anything for the most part. The takedowns plus landing a handful of more shots, I read the significant strikes were 112-109, that won Cruz the fight. Solid fight.

Pettis-Alvarez. UGHHHH. I wanted Pettis to win so fucking bad but I knew once the takedowns started happening and Pettis was looking a tad gassed and fearful of the takedowns, I knew it was probably going to be a 29-28 for Alvarez. I was actually shocked it went to a split decision but I think that the first round, those takedowns didn't really amount to much and Pettis was landing more shots. I went and read the Sherdog play by play and they actually gave the first 2 rounds to Pettis so I could see that but honestly I was thinking, Alvarez, 29-28. Big win for him, he just beat Gilbert in his last fight, now Pettis, I don't think it'd be hard to say this guy definitely warrants the winner of RDA-McGregor. Really only Tony Ferguson is the only other guy I could think of as he has a longer winning streak but he doesn't have 2 top 5 wins back to back.

Browne-Meathead fight was what it was. Some big shots here and there, that hematoma on Meathead, WOW. Reminded me of Hominick after he fought Jose Aldo.

Pretty good rest of the card. A little sad Saunders lost, he's one of my faves but there's something about these dudes in their early-mid 30's kind of evolving and figuring it all out after having a rough time in their 20's piecing it together. Cote was in there with a solid ground guy and he looked like a completely different fighter than I'm used to seeing. He still has the bombs but Ben has a spotty chin, he seems to get lit pretty easily, like a Rich Franklin type.

And what was Ed Herman doing calling out Cormier? I mean I get that everyone should want the champ but that was his first fight at 205, and his record isn't exactly nice at 185....I was just checking out his record, his last fight he was stopped in 30 seconds, he's traded wins and losses left and right over the last 6 years.

Spedizzo
January 18th, 2016, 11:47 AM
-I was in and out of the Browne/Mitrione fight, but that eye poke and aftermath of it was gruesome.

-Dana won't give Eddie Alvarez the winner of RDA/McGregor (at least not right away) strictly because of the type of fighter he is and the strategy he imposes. Alvarez came in with a similar gameplan to that of what Clay Guida utilized on Pettis. Pettis is a talented fighter, but takedowns and pressure seems to really be his kryptonite. I didn't pay as much attention to to the fight as I should have, so I can't really say who should have won the decision.

-Cruz/Dillashaw was a great fight. The first 3 rounds were close, but I had them all going slightly in favor of Cruz. I could see a judge giving one of them to Dillashaw. Round 4 was clearly Dillashaw's round. Round 5 I believe was Dillashaw's as well. Cruz' foot was definitely hurt in the championship rounds and his footwork was gone. He still pushed through though. I can see a rematch in the works.

Cruz' post-fight comments; "Kenny Florian, stop copy and pasting" was in reference to Kenny Florian getting suspended as a Fox analyst for plagiarism on some online MMA article which I found pretty funny since Cruz is an analyst as well.

Eddie Brock
January 18th, 2016, 1:20 PM
Cruz/Faber 3 and then a rematch for Dillashaw works for me.

Nash Diesel
January 18th, 2016, 2:21 PM
I'm thinking we might see Faber-Cruz 3 or maybe a super fight with Mighty Mouse v. Cruz, and they could do Faber-Dillashaw for the title shot?

Kdestiny
January 18th, 2016, 4:19 PM
That'd be excellent

Nash Diesel
January 18th, 2016, 4:23 PM
There's honestly no reason to even have the 125 division. Especially when the majority of Mighty Mouse's fights are ppv headliners that do shit numbers both at the gate and on ppv. He might as well move up. The rest of the division, idk, this is why it was cool when the UFC had the WEC still active, that would be a good place for the division, show it on Fight Pass or Fox Sports 1. It's just few and far between where they have good fights and everyone good in that division has pretty much fought each other. It's bad enough where they have 50 events a year now.

Mik
January 18th, 2016, 6:50 PM
I'd be interested in seeing Dodson and DJ moving up and taking on Faber, TJ and Cruz. No point having the lowest division really when it's champion is so dominant.

I scored it 3-2 for Cruz and 2-1 for Alvarez. Thought the overall judging was unusually decent tonight.

I think that if TJ couldn't beat Cruz with 4 years ring rust and a hurt foot, then he can't beat him. When Cruz was on form for those first three rounds TJ couldn't touch him and that style that he has emulated from Cruz completely deserted him as he went flat footed and head hunting.

Pettis was disappointing. Don't even know why he bothers training his striking, it's always going to be there for him, but the blueprint is pretty basic to beat him and you don't even need to be a top level wrestler to pull it off. Pettis should be training take down defence and creating space on the cage 100% of the time. Absolute kryptonite.

Eddie Brock
January 18th, 2016, 7:25 PM
Fights to make...

Assuncao/Cruz - Assuncao has been waiting for his shot. If both are healthy the time is right.
Dillashaw/Faber - goes without saying.
Alvarez/Diaz - Good contrast of styles.
Ferguson/Pettis - all kinds of yes in this one.
Browne/Hunt - battle of the Islanders.
Cote/Story - similar styles, could be a banger.

Mik
January 18th, 2016, 7:31 PM
Switch to Ferguson/Alvarez and Pettis/Diaz.

Spedizzo
January 19th, 2016, 9:24 AM
Pettis/Diaz buildup and actual fight would be awesome.

But Pettis would probably have to pull out of the fight considering he just had a fight. He only fights once every 2 years before injuring something.

OD50
January 19th, 2016, 9:24 AM
Fan of Alvarez since his BodogFight days and was happy that he won, fight was ugly as sin though.

Pondering what to do next at 135.. Main peeps would be Cruz, Dillashaw, Faber and Assuncäo of course. At 155 it's RDA/Mystic Mac, Alvarez, Ferguson and Khabib. Maybe throw in Diaz, not sure. He looked good against Johnson and Maynard but lost to RDA, Thomson and Benson in between.

Biggest money fights at 135 would be Cruz/Faber III and Dillashaw/Faber I believe, more due to storylines than rankings. Assuncao is on 7 fight win streak (including Dillashaw) so he should be considered for either a title fight or title eliminator vs TJ.

How about Eddie Alvarez/Tony Ferguson and Khabib Nurmagomedov/Nate Diaz? With the winner looking the best fighting RDA/McGregor.

Spedizzo
January 19th, 2016, 9:29 AM
-I'd rather see Dillashaw/Faber because of the freshness of their feud. We don't know the status of Cruz' foot at the moment... and if Cruz was able to beat Dillashaw after a 4 year lay off and went 2 rounds with a fucked up foot, I think he will dismantle an aging Faber. I am not interested in that fight right now.

-Khabib Nurmagomedov/Nate Diaz is an absolutely awful match for Diaz and I don't know what Khabib's status is at the moment. About 2 months ago there were reports that he might just retire from MMA all together due to the severity and frequency of his injuries. Plus, Diaz does not really deserve a match against someone who is 22-0 and his last victory is against the current LW champion. I think Pettis/Diaz makes more sense.

-Eddie Alvarez/Tony Ferguson makes sense and could be worthy of a title shot.

OD50
January 19th, 2016, 9:38 AM
Apparently Khabib tweeted Dana that he wants Alvarez next. And yeah, Diaz/Pettis wouldn't be bad at all.

Spedizzo
January 19th, 2016, 9:42 AM
Khabib/Alvarez would be a good fight. Not sure how the ring rust would be on Khabib, but he is far superior in sambo, judo, and wrestling - which has primarily been Eddie Alvarez' bread and butter as of late.

Nash Diesel
January 19th, 2016, 11:22 AM
I don't know how any could think Khabib is too big of a fight for Nate Diaz but then say Showtime v. Diaz....Khabib has really only had 1 solid victory and honestly if RDA didn't go on a tear after that loss, would it have really been that big of a win?

Eddie Brock
January 19th, 2016, 11:45 AM
When has Khabib actually faced a real wrestler with good striking?

Nash Diesel
January 19th, 2016, 11:51 AM
I think Khabib should fight anyone in the top 10...Pettis, Cerrone, Alvarez, the loser of McGregor/RDA, Diaz, any of those guys would be a good fight but shit he's been out for awhile but hey, 22-0, you need to fight the best the UFC has to offer.

Spedizzo
January 19th, 2016, 2:45 PM
Khabib would wrestle fuck Diaz. Pettis vs. Diaz is a much more favorable match-up for Diaz.

Nash Diesel
January 19th, 2016, 3:28 PM
Khabib would wrestle fuck Diaz. Pettis vs. Diaz is a much more favorable match-up for Diaz.

Eh, it's possible but you never know. Diaz has a fantastic ground game and they're probably going to fight eventually anyway. I want to see Diaz against both of them, but I'm not about fights that are favorable for one guy over another because again, they're going to fight anyway if they want to be the best. Khabib would probably wrestle fuck Pettis as well, but you never know until it happens. Khabib hasn't fought half the talent those 2 have so it's hard to say what a guy who hasn't fought in 2 years will be able to do against tough guys like that.

Mik
January 19th, 2016, 6:48 PM
When has Khabib actually faced a real wrestler with good striking?


Who is there in the division like that better than RDA?

Fanny Batter
January 20th, 2016, 7:43 AM
Pettis vs. Diaz is an ideal fight, both are big names some way away from a title shot, but fighting each other and the hype it would bring would have them closer than they would be fighting the Barboza's and Pearson's of the division.

Cruz is a fucking beast. What a man. That performance, after all those injuries and the layoff, wow. It was a close fight but one that you could tell Cruz would have won more convincingly had he been sharper and healthier. His style is great to watch. Like Mik said, it's a shame flyweight exists really because there's nobody that can beat Mighty Mouse and no potential stars in the bracket. Bantamweight, a wasteland 2 years ago, is great now though. Cruz, Faber, Barao (assuming he stays at the weight now Aldo's 155 aspirations are on hold), Dillashaw and Assuncao is a great top 5, and some of the best prospects are at the weight too - Almeida, Sterling, Garbrandt, Font, Riveira and Sanders. Throw in former top 5 flyweights in Lineker and Dodson and top 15 staples like Wineland, Alcantara and Caraway and it's a top weight class.