The former bantamweight champion could be returning to the cage this summer for the first time in almost 3 years. It was reported this week on UFC Tonight the Dominick Cruz, the former UFC bantamweight champion, is targeting a return to the Octagon at UFC 177, that can be set to take place August 30 at Las Vegas, Nevada. According to Cruz’ head coach at Alliance MMA in San Diego, Eric Del Fierro, their camp wants Cruz to take on top contender Takeya Mizugaki in his comeback match. With a triumph over Mizugaki, Cruz would place himself near getting another crack at the belt in 135lbs. Cruz has not fought since October 2011, when he defeated present UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson via five-round unanimous decision in a strategic affair. Overall Cruz defended the UFC/WEC bantamweight title four occasions between 2010 and 2011 before suffering a major knee injury in 2012 that has kept him out of the cage for more than two years now. But it should be noted that he has among the greatest winning streaks of fighter in the branch with 10-straight victories over the likes of Urijah Faber, Brian Bowles, Joseph Benavidez, Scott Jorgensen, Ian McCall, and the above Johnson. Despite lost so long, the UFC let him hold on his belt till last year, when enough was enough and also the advertising stripped the name from him and gave it into interim bantamweight champ Renan Barao. UFC president Dana White explained that Cruz would exude an immediate title shot on his return into the cage, but with TJ Dillashaw bothering Barao and carrying the title this past May in UFC 173, it makes more sense for Cruz to fight someone else before getting another crack in the belt. A fight between Cruz and Mizugaki would be outstanding, and it might help ascertain where precisely”The Dominator” matches in the division at the present moment. At one stage he was considered one of the top five pound-for-pound fighters in the world, but after missing so much time with injury and having so much cage rust, it is logical for him to fight somebody first before obtaining his title shot, and the matchup involving Mizugaki makes a whole lot of sense. Whether this fight goes , Cruz would put in the fight as a slight favorite but with this much time off and with Mizugaki on such a nice series at the moment, there is no way it’s a gimme fight by any means and there might surely be an upset brewing if Cruz isn’t anywhere close to what he was used to look like.
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