Thoughts & Shots from UFC Fight Night ‘Dillashaw vs. Cruz’

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BOSTON -- Dominick Cruz told everyone what was going to happen on Sunday at the TD Garden. He told T.J. Dillashaw and anyone else who would listen that he would employ his unique movement to nullify his opponent’s offense. Then, he went out and did it.

After fighting for just 62 seconds over the last 51 months, the former champion engaged in a 25-minute war to snatch back the belt he never lost. He then jumped on the microphone and needled a fellow Fox network analyst for picking Dillashaw: “Kenny Florian, quit copying and pasting, man!”

You see, there are no peppershakers on the tables at the Cruz household. There’s nothing but salt. The dude is so salty he should own stock in Morton’s. His testy side was on display again as he made his way to the post-fight press conference. As Cruz entered the room, Dillashaw was discussing some of the issues he had coming into the fight, including a staph infection.

“Here come the excuses,” chirped Cruz, as he limped his way to the dais.

Oh, yeah, back to that fight, and what a fight it was -- 25 minutes of constant motion, defensive excellence and offensive output. Cruz was just a little bit better than Dillashaw in my opinion, but it was a close fight that really doesn’t have a loser as far as I’m concerned. I know this puts Dillashaw on the sidelines for a bit when it comes to the Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight title, but I don’t think anyone feels he won’t get another crack at it or Cruz.

Looking forward, I just don’t see how Urijah Faber isn’t the next in line to settle his long-running feud with “The Dominator” in a much-anticipated rubber match. It just makes too much sense. For his part, Faber told assembled media after the fight that he had Cruz winning 4-1 despite the fact he was rooting for Dillashaw. Harsh. When asked if he’ll be next, Faber said, “I don’t have a guarantee, but the UFC aren’t dummies.” My guess is the deal gets done as long as Cruz’s plantar fasciitis is the minor problem he made it out to be post-fight. That should leave Dillashaw primed for a rematch somewhere by the end of the year, if he can hold up his side of the bargain and win a fight in the interim.

One monkey wrench that may throw the plan into chaos -- and something I would absolutely love to see -- could be a rematch between Cruz and flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson. I have been pining for this fight for some time and would love to see it go down this fall if both guys can retain their titles and stay healthy.

Anyway, what a job by Cruz, I can’t give him enough props for proving he’s the best bantamweight in the world, even though he has had to overcome enough adversity for a lifetime over the past four years. Congrats, champ, you most definitely deserve it.

Alvarez Shocks ‘Showtime’

Eddie Alvarez’s win over former champion Anthony Pettis in the UFC Fight Night “Dillashaw vs. Cruz” co-main event was a fairly big upset. No one in the building looked as surprised as Alvarez himself when the final scores of the split decision were read. It has been quite a ride for the two-time Bellator MMA lightweight champ since his move to the UFC, but he is now firmly cemented in the title picture in the toughest division in combat sports.

For Pettis, it was a tough loss to take. He was returning from an injury suffered in his loss to the man who waltzed off with his title belt, Rafael dos Anjos, and was expected to walk through Alvarez on his path back to the throne. While it was a very close fight and many people had Pettis ahead on their meaningless scorecards, it can’t be denied that he just didn’t look like his old self. The crazy speed and athleticism to which we have become accustomed just weren’t on display. He had Alvarez on the defensive on a number of occasions and wasn’t able to close him out. I’m not sure if it’s more on Pettis or if we should be giving Alvarez more credit.

Pettis is now 5-3 in his UFC run. That’s hard to believe given how dominant he has looked at times. “Showtime” and his team will have some soul searching to do when they get back to Milwaukee if they are going to get back on track.

Controversial Win for Browne

Travis Browne did some serious damage late in his heavyweight fight when he slammed Matt Mitrione to the canvas and pounded away until referee Gary Forman stepped in to call it at 4:09 of the third round. The problem, though, stems from the fact that Browne dug his fingers into Mitrione’s eye sockets far enough to tickle his frontal lobe on two occasions prior to the final beatdown.

The most unbelievable circumstance of the situation was the fact that Forman didn’t even consider taking a point on either occasion. Both of the fouls were obvious in nature and should have, at the very least, resulted in a stern warning. The fact that Browne was not penalized is a complete travesty.

Unfortunately, MMA and the referees that officiate its matches have a hard time taking away points in even the most obvious situations. I get that it’s a huge factor in three-round fights, but at this point, we get at least one free fence grab, shot to the groin or finger to the eye per fight. That has to change.

I would much rather have a draw or decision that is affected by a point deductions than a fighter like Mitrione losing a bout that was tilted so far in his opponent’s favor by illegal strikes. There needs to be repercussions for fouls, and there just aren’t at this point. The lack of any action by the referee in this case made a bad situation even worse.

Sherdog.com Executive Editor Greg Savage can be reached by email at [email protected] or via Twitter @TheSavageTruth.