As the year draws to a close, it offers us a great opportunity to take a look at the state of the UFC’s roster, and what we can expect in the upcoming months.
Today, we’re going to be looking at the UFC Bantamweight Division (135lbs).
Currently when we think of 135lbs, we think of two names: Dominick Cruz and TJ Dillashaw.
The two are scheduled to fight on January 17th, and the bout presents a fascinating story. Cruz, the previous champion, had to vacate his belt after being plagued with injuries. At the time of his last title defense against Demetrious Johnson, Cruz’s movement and tactical prowess made him one of the most skilled fighters in the sport. Yet, Cruz was unfortunately forced out of competition with repeated ACL issues.
In his absence, the Bantamweight title was won by Renan Barão, an explosive fighter from Brazil who won 32 fights in a row. A fight between the two was scheduled, but never came to fruition due to Cruz’s injuries. So, instead, Barão faced off against a more unexperienced TJ Dillashaw.
In that fight, Dillashaw shocked the world by destroying the champion, knocking him out in the fifth round. What really got the attention of the audience, however, wasn’t just the victory, it was the manner in which Dillashaw carried it out.
Previously considered primarily a wrestler, the Dillashaw that fought Barão had world class footwork, constantly switched his stances, and spent the fight mixing up angles and generally baffling the champion with unpredictability. TJ’s new found fighting style, which he attributed to coaching by Duane Ludwig, had an eerie, familiar feeling to it… namely in just how similar a style it was to ex-champion Cruz’s.
The similarity didn’t go unobserved, and a fight between the two has long been sought. After Cruz announced his return from injury, the two have been scheduled to fight in early 2016.
Cruz for his part, is unimpressed with the comparisons, and has regularly criticised the new champion and coach Ludwig, causing a war of words between the two fighters.
“When people make a comparison, they don’t know what they’re comparing,” said Cruz on the MMA Hour earlier this year. “The bottom line is, I make his career worth anything. I’m the only fight he needs to be worth anything. So he should be thanking me for being out as long as I have, because it’s given him the chance to have a spotlight. Otherwise he’d just still be the least of alphas at Team Alpha Fail.”
Currently, Dillashaw is favourite at the bookies with odds being Dillashaw -150 to Cruz +130.
With attention on the two, it could be forgiven to forget that another interesting tale is occurring in the UFC Bantamweight Division.
Veteran Urijah Faber recently defeated Frankie Saenz with a gritty decision at UFC 194. Faber, a long time coach and mentor to Dillashaw, has recently aired his displeasure at the fact Dillashaw left Faber’s team ‘Alpha Male’ to go and train with Ludwig. During Faber’s run as a coach on the Ultimate Fighter, attention was drawn to the split by Conor McGregor, who labeled Dillashaw a “Snake in the grass.”
Since then, fans have wondered who would win between the student and the teacher.
After Faber’s victory over Saenz, he admitted in his post-fight interview that he’d be interested in taking that fight.
“Fighting for the title is what my goal is. I took myself off the market for a while,” Faber said. “It’s kind of a weird thing when you’ve been at the top of any division you’ve been in your entire career to take a backseat because of friendship. That’s off the table now. I’ve been released from the friendship.”
Even if Dillashaw loses to Cruz, one imagines Faber will no doubt still be in talks for the next title shot, as he and the former champion have no love lost between them.
Prediction for 2016: TJ Dillashaw beats a ring-rust hindered Dominick Cruz and then goes on to defeat his former mentor Urijah Faber to cement his position as rightful champion of the UFC Bantamweight Division.
