Cruz outlasts Dillashaw to reclaim bantamweight belt
BOSTON — It took four long years and five tough rounds, but the Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight title is back around the waist of Dominick Cruz.
The former champ reclaimed the belt with a split decision over T.J. Dillashaw in the main event of UFC Fight Night 81 at TD Garden on Sunday night.
Cruz had to be helped from the cage and back to the locker room due to what he says was a pre-existing foot injury. It was only fitting after his struggles of the past few years.
He was stripped of the title when he missed three years due to a series of injuries, including two anterior cruciate ligament tears and a torn groin muscle. After returning for an impressive 61-second knockout of Takeya Mizugaki in 2014 to once again solidify his spot as the top contender, Cruz tore the ACL in his other knee and again was out of the picture.
He did enough over five razor-thin rounds Sunday to sway two of the three judges in his favor and complete the comeback story.
"I don't know how many times I've said it, but there's no such thing as rust," he said. "It doesn't exist unless you don't train hard enough, and I train my but off every day."
The fight had an odd dynamic as both fighters employ similar styles. In fact, Cruz has said Dillashaw essentially is copying him because he spent several years mimicking Cruz in the gym to prepare his teammates for past fights.
The similarities were obvious when the two stepped in the cage. Both fighters do a great job of utilizing constant movement to avoid strikes and attack at different angles.
Early on, Dillashaw was reaching and often swinging at air. He settled in as the fight progressed but still found difficulty making solid contact.
Cruz landed 112 of 302 significant strikes and went 4 of 11 on takedown attempts, which might have been the difference even though he didn't do much damage once he got the fight on the ground. Dillashaw landed 109 of 408 strikes but converted just 1 of 8 takedowns.
It was close enough that all three judges agreed only that Cruz won the second round. The cards varied in each of the other rounds.
Dillashaw disagreed with the verdict.
"I'm very disappointed. I thought I had the fight, I thought I was the aggressor, I thought I pushed the pace. I feel like the last two rounds I won pretty decisively," he said. "I felt I won the fight; I want to do it again. Props to Dominick. I missed some shots; it was my fault for not following them up.
"It's a tough one to take."
The judges also were conflicted in the lightweight contender bout between Eddie Alvarez and former champion Anthony Pettis.
Alvarez, who doggedly pursued takedowns throughout the fight, was awarded the victory by split decision.
Pettis found success nearly every time he got free from Alvarez's grasp, but that wasn't often enough.
"I don't think it was split. I don't know what went on there or who scored it for Pettis, but that guy must have been watching a different fight," Alvarez said. "I would've liked to have kept it standing a bit more just for myself, but the plan was to keep him up against the cage.
"He landed a few shots, but I didn't feel any power from him, and I was able to dominate the fight."
Heavyweight Travis Browne didn't need the judges, but his third-round knockout of Matt Mitrione wasn't free of controversy.
Browne poked Mitrione in the eye twice in the first two rounds, causing a massive hematoma to form above his eye. He finally slammed Mitrione to the ground in the fifth, appearing to injure his shoulder in the process.
Moments later, Mitrione succumbed to a barrage of shots on the ground.
Francisco Trinaldo opened the main card with a unanimous decision over Ross Pearson in a lightweight bout. It was Trinaldo's fifth straight win, with four going the distance.
Veteran welterweight Patrick Cote highlighted the preliminary card with a second-round knockout of Ben Saunders.
As the fighters locked up in the clinch, Cote unleashed a series of uppercuts until Saunders fell to the mat. Cote continued the barrage until the referee stopped the fight.
Cote improved to 5-1 since dropping to 170 pounds in 2013. Saunders had won three straight since returning to the UFC.
"I didn't push the pace enough in the first round, so when I got back to my corner, they told me I needed to move forward more, push the pace and let my hands go," Cote said. "I didn't win Powerball, but I hope I get that bonus, I had a great performance tonight."
Ed Herman, fighting at light heavyweight for the first time since before he signed with the UFC in 2006, scored a second-round knockout of Tim Boetsch.
After losing the first round, Herman landed a huge knee in the clinch that was the beginning of the end for Boetsch.
"This is a permanent move to light heavyweight. I feel like I have a lot more energy and power in this division," said Herman, who still is familiarizing himself with his new weight class. "Who's the champion in this division? Daniel Cormier — I want you next."
Chris Wade and Luke Sanders recorded first-round submissions by rear naked choke.
On the untelevised portion of the card, Ilir Latifi and Rob Font won by knockout, and Francimar Barroso and Charles Rosa won by decision.
Also, Paul Felder pulled off a submission of Daron Cruickshank at 3:56 of the third round in a lightweight bout.
Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamilllvrj.
