Dominick Cruz (R) attempts to punch T.J. Dillashaw in their bantamweight bout during UFC Fight Night 81 at TD Banknorth Garden on January 17, 2016 in Boston, Massachusetts.
After weeks of rumors, all signs seem to point toward bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz (22-1 MMA, 5-0 UFC) defending his title against undefeated rising star Cody Garbrandt (10-0 MMA, 5-0 UFC) at UFC 207 in Las Vegas on Dec. 30.
UFC officials haven’t announced the match-up yet.
Torque Sports & Performance, co-founded by Team Alpha Male founder Urijah Faber, sponsors Garbrandt– who also trains at Alpha Male.
Cruz on Thursday posted a pair of photos on his Instagram of him punching Faber in January’s bantamweight title match and former Alpha Male fighter (and champion) T.J. Dillshaw at UFC 199 in June, along with the caption, “NEXT,” implying he hopes to take on Garbrandt as his next opponent. Cruz won both fights.
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The main UFC 207 card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass. In the main event, former champ Ronda Rousey tries to recapture the women’s bantamweight title when she returns from a layoff in excess of a year to meet new champ Amanda Nunes.
Garbrandt has been itching for a title shot ever since he knocked out Thomas Almeida in the first round of the UFC Fight Night 88 main event in May, taking a fight-night bonus in the process. Then in August, he shut down former WEC bantamweight title challenger Takeya Mizugaki in just 48 seconds with a major TKO.
Garbrandt and Cruz have exchanged fighting words in interviews and on social media the last few months, so an imminent matchup is probable.
Following his defeat of Mizugaki, at a fan Q&A at UFC 203 in his native Ohio, Garbrandt stated he had a confrontation with Cruz backstage at UFC 202– and the pair needed to be separated by light heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier.
After he defeated Almeida, Garbrandt, then 24, told the media that defeating Cruz was something he had been thinking about since he was 16 years old.
Cruz has not lost a fight in nine and a half years. Since then, however, he has been beset by injuries.
He became the UFC’s first bantamweight champion after the merger with the WEC and beat Faber and Demetrious Johnson, who went on to become the UFC’s long-reigning flyweight champ.
But after the win over Johnson in October 2011, he was out for nearly three years with knee injuries.
The current UFC title card includes:
BOSTON, MA – JANUARY 17: Dominick Cruz (R) attempts to punch T.J. Dillashaw in their bantamweight bout during UFC Fight Night 81 at TD Banknorth Garden on January 17, 2016 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)
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