What’s the story?
Over the years longtime UFC bantamweight champion Dominick ‘The Dominator’ Cruz has reigned as the invisible force of the 135 pound division, but that all came to an end when he was masterfully outclassed by challenger Cody ‘No Love’ Garbrandt in the co main event of UFC 207 this past weekend (Friday December 30, 2016). Garbrandt dominated ‘The Dominator’ for five rounds en route to his bantamweight title win, and after the bout stated that he feels he’s removed any sense of invincibility from the aura of Cruz.
In case you didn’t know...
Cruz is the most dominant champion the UFC’s bantamweight division has ever seen, not having lost in nearly a decade since making the drop down to 135 pounds. Cruz’s last defeat came in 2007 when he was choked out by ‘The California Kid’ Urijah Faber.
The heart of the matter:
Here’s what Garbradnt had to say about his dominant win over Cruz:
“I was really just curious to see his speed, his angles,” said Garbrandt during the UFC 207 post-fight press conference (courtesy of LowKickMMA). “Everyone believed the hype of him being … he’s The Matrix, he’s a ghost in there. He’s great. I’m not taking nothing away from him, but I was almost in shock he was as slow as he was in his movements and his angles weren’t there.”
“That’s when it changed right there,” added Garbrandt. “He didn’t like that blood running down his face. That’s when I said, ‘Dominick, are you having fun yet?’ And he didn’t answer me. In the first and second round, he would answer me back each time. That’s right then, I knew that he wasn’t having fun in the fight.”
The Impact
With the win Garbrandt has accomplished what so many before him never could, with the exception of his coach and mentor Urijah Faber who was the only man to ever defeat Cruz in his mixed martial arts (MMA) career. Faber defeated Cruz in his WEC debut with a vicious guillotine choke, but failed to ever beat him again in his next two opportunities in the UFC in his title bouts.
Now Garbrandt is the man who finally brings home a win over Cruz for Team Alpha Male, and it all comes due in large part to the wealth of knowledge he has in his ear in Faber.
Sportskeeda’s take:
Given how dominant Cruz has been in his career, he is far from done in the sport and will most certainly be back by year’s end to attempt to re capture his title. As for Garbrandt, plenty of fights await the new young champion, and a bout with former champ TJ Dillashaw is most likely what is on the docket next.
