Dominick Cruz
United States

  • Full name Dominick Cruz
  • Nickname The Dominator
  • Birth date September 3, 1985
  • Birth place Tucson, Arizona
  • Current age 38 years 207 days
  • Height 5 ft 8 in
  • Weight 135 lb
Dominick Cruz lands a vicious punch
Profile

If one individual in the entire sport of MMA could have his fights accompanied by a musical soundtrack, it would surely be UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz.

"The Dominator" is a fighter like no other in the UFC. The words 'unorthodox', 'unpredictable' and 'elusive' were made for Cruz's style of fighting. A whirl of breathless motion, he dances his way through fights - delivering plenty of pain to his opponent while receiving little in return.

The Arizona native is a member of Team Alliance, and he is known for having one of the best attitudes in the sport. "Nobody works harder than Dominick Cruz", once noted Ross Pearson.

Certainly there are few who work harder in the Octagon. Beaten only once in his career to date, Cruz is a veteran of the WEC scene. That loss came against Urijah Faber on WEC debut, when a naive Cruz jumped into the California Kid's guillotine to suffer defeat in their featherweight title showdown.

Cruz quickly dropped to bantamweight, his natural home, where he is yet to even look like losing. Victory over Brian Bowles handed Cruz the WEC 135lb title, which became the UFC 135lb belt when the organisations merged.

Since then Cruz has avenged his defeat to Faber, taking a decision in one of the fights of 2011, but it looks like he will have to meet Faber for a third time - as well as Renan Barao - in order to prove his dominance in the bantamweight division.

Career high
Having lost to Faber at featherweight in 2007, there was the suggestion that Cruz was never the true bantamweight champion until he proved he could beat the California Kid. That happened at UFC 132, where Cruz out-manoeuvred and out-struck his rival, taking a unanimous decision after a pulsating battle.

Career low
Strictly in UFC terms, there have been no career lows yet for Cruz other than a serious knee injury, so his sole loss to Faber in the WEC has to be the one stain on his record. Cruz looked good in the fight until he tossed his gameplan out the window, looking for a needless takedown that allowed Faber to lock on the fight-ending guillotine.

Quote
"Man if they pay me enough money I'll fight anybody at heavyweight - I'll just run around like a chicken!"
Dominick Cruz reacts to being asked if he would fight Brock Lesnar

Trivia
Cruz was kicked out of his home at the age of 19 for hosting a house party.

Top

Latest Articles
Latest Photos

May 11, 2012

Dominick Cruz speaks with Justin Lawrence backstage

Mar 4, 2012

Dominick Cruz waves to the crowd before the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series SUBWAY Fresh Fit 500

Oct 2, 2011

Dominick Cruz slams Demetrious Johnson

Oct 2, 2011

Dominick Cruz lands a vicious punch

View the full list of related photos »

Top