"Beast mode" Cruz

[105]

Am I the only one who is a little skeptical of Cruz' ability to beat TJ, or Barao right now? It was flat out impressive the way he came out and looked so fluid and dominant in finishing Mizugaki like he did.... Takeya is a notoriously durable fighter, I'm not taking anything away from Cruz but lets face it... That was a warm-up fight and that's what was supposed to happen... I'd like a Faber rematch or something along those lines before a title shot...

 

[PanSophon415**]

Tj is like a Diet Cruz, pretty much fights Cruz style but robotic and trained, Cruz is natural. Tj beat Barao with Cruz like movement. You need to go look at Cruz's bouts before his lay-off, he's insane. Made everyone else, including Barao, Faber, MM, look like rookies. So yes, he's ready to get his belt back that was never lost in the first place.

 

[105]

I know he's a top of the line fighter with crazy footwork... I'm not a Cruz fan just because he is kind of a point fighter... I was impressed with his dismantling of Mizugaki but I would like to see him paired with a better(top 5) fighter is all.

 

[Mattitude V1]

Cruz is the real champion, first and foremost. He never lost it.

TJ beats Barao and suddenly he can't be beaten?

MMA fans and media OBSESS over layoffs. The truth is they don't matter. There aren't tons of examples of layoffs causing losses.

Usually, the fighter with the layoff winds up winning anyway.

 

[SirDiddymus]

Dom is p4p a top fighter. He is taking back the belt TJ and Barao have had on loan.

 

[105]

I must be in the minority on this one, haha....

 

[TKZOMBIE]

TJ is better at switching.
Dom is better at useless and far too many steps that makes him invulnerable except when he attacks.
If TJ can show his counter skills, Cruz will get smashed

 

[Phrozenspite]

I must be in the minority on this one, haha....

Cruz was a p4p guy who basically had bw cleaned out and sent the #1 and 2 guy at flyweight packing before his injury. I could see where you were coming from if it was zingano or cormier but dominick cruz is the man that people should be chasing to legitimize themselves, not the other way around.

 

[Mattitude V1]

I must be in the minority on this one, haha....

TJ got stopped by Dodson, won some quality fights, LOSES AGAIN to Assuncao, beats Easton and then Barao and Soto.

This obviously doesn't do his performances justice, but there's no reason Cruz "can't" win. He could lose, but he can win too.

 

[105]

Cruz was a p4p guy who basically had bw cleaned out and sent the #1 and 2 guy at flyweight packing before his injury. I could see where you were coming from if it was zingano or cormier but dominick cruz is the man that people should be chasing to legitimize themselves, not the other way around.

I never thought of it like that... Very good point...

 

[Savage86]

I think TJ vs Cruz makes the most sense in terms of match making and making money. Cruz is one of the few superstars at bw. UFC gonna do TJ-Cruz first then if Cruz wins they can make Cruz-Faber 3, thus making money and giving Faber his 84th shot at the title.

 

[JAGDPANZER209]

If Dom can work over TJ or not, either way 135 is quite exciting right now.

 

[FlyingKimurabar]

I'm mostly surprised how many people are on Cruz bandwagon now. For the last 2+ years this forum has been filled with " Barao would murder Cruz, Cruz is scared of Barao, Cruz will never fight again, Cruz is a gimp, Cruz should just retire, no way Cruz will show up vs Mizugaki, Cruz is a boring point fighter, Cruz is the most boring fighter in the UFC, Cruz will be a shell of his former self. "

Now it seems like every thread 90%+ people think he beats TJ & Barao.

As a Cruz fan I don't really mind, the more the merrier, but I'm just kinda surprised and the complete turn around on Cruz. Maybe Sherdogs biggest turn around on one fighter due to a single fight. Pretty cool.

War Cruz!

 

[FlyingKimurabar]

Cruz was a p4p guy who basically had bw cleaned out and sent the #1 and 2 guy at flyweight packing before his injury. I could see where you were coming from if it was zingano or cormier but dominick cruz is the man that people should be chasing to legitimize themselves, not the other way around.

And unlike most divisions, BW was nearly as tough back then as it is now. I think MM & Benavidez probably beat everyone at BW except for Cruz, TJ, & Barao. Maybe Faber, but thats a toss up. MM might even beat some of those guys tbh.

 

[Sac423]

TJ is better at switching.
Dom is better at useless and far too many steps that makes him invulnerable except when he attacks.
If TJ can show his counter skills, Cruz will get smashed

If Cruz leaves TJ guessing with all his "useless" steps then TJ will get smashed


Now that I got the absolutes out of the way.....


Neither fighter gets smashed is the logical answer. This will likely be a close fight. Both will have their moments. Both are champions. Cruz stylistically will pose problems to TJ and vice versa. TJ is a product of the Cruz blueprint anyways. This will be a great fight

 

[LilMountain]

The man is 20-1 losing only to Faber at featherweight way back in 2007. My only doubt about him is his knee. If it holds up no one else has a chance

 

[anthony stark]

I'm mostly surprised how many people are on Cruz bandwagon now. For the last 2+ years this forum has been filled with " Barao would murder Cruz, Cruz is scared of Barao, Cruz will never fight again, Cruz is a gimp, Cruz should just retire, no way Cruz will show up vs Mizugaki, Cruz is a boring point fighter, Cruz is the most boring fighter in the UFC, Cruz will be a shell of his former self. "

Now it seems like every thread 90%+ people think he beats TJ & Barao.

As a Cruz fan I don't really mind, the more the merrier, but I'm just kinda surprised and the complete turn around on Cruz. Maybe Sherdogs biggest turn around on one fighter due to a single fight. Pretty cool.

War Cruz!

on sherdog, you're just as good as your last fight.

 

[roventu]

Cruz cleaned out his division, and beat (#3 P4P) Might Mouse and made him drop a division bc he knew he wasnt going to get anywhere in BW

you're crazy if you think the imitation is better than the real thing

 

[KantoTerror]

Like I said before...anything TJ does...Cruz does better. That layoff won't be a problem if Cruz is in a good camp. It was already displayed vs. a very game Mizugaki.

 

[UJustGotChaeld]

I don't think the consensus was Cruz would stop Mizugaki in the 1st round like that. So claiming he only did what he was supposed to do is somewhat misleading.