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Dominick Cruz's charge towards the title was stopped dead in its tracks on Saturday when he was on the receiving end of a devastating head kick KO loss. The defeat to Marlon Vera will be a tough one to take for the former champion Cruz, who looked great in the earlier rounds of the contest.
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It will now be interesting to see where he goes from here as it will be tough for him to re-enter the title picture. With that being said, he looked in great shape early and was getting the better of a top five bantamweight at times. His next opponent is therefore likely to still have a number next to their name.
Here are five fights that could be next for Dominick Cruz:
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#5. Dominick Cruz vs. Merab Dvalishivili
While Cruz’s bantamweight main event is now in the rear-view mirror, there will be another big-time fight in the division this coming weekend. Merab Dvalishvili will face Jose Aldo with the winner likely to find themselves right around the title picture. The loser, however, is likely to land right around Cruz in the rankings.
Given Aldo’s strong record against wrestlers in the past, perhaps Dvalishvili will suffer a loss, which could set up a fight with Dominick Cruz. Dvalishvili is still young and his current win streak indicates he could still have a bright future in the division even if he does suffer a loss this weekend.
A match-up between the pair would allow one of these men to remain right around the division’s top five and within title contention. It would be interesting to see how Dvalishvili’s grappling would match up against Cruz’s sensational footwork. Obviously, this weekend will be crucial to this potential fight.
#4. Dominick Cruz vs. Ricky Simón
With Dominick Cruz suffering a loss and likely approaching the end of his career, perhaps the UFC will look to build a new star off his name. Ricky Simón is an up-and-coming contender and is currently sitting at no. 11 in the rankings due to his latest five-fight win streak. The match-up would be an intriguing one.
Simón has shown his potential throughout his UFC career and now appears to be putting it all together at 29-years-old. The most high-profile bout of his career thus far came in an upset loss to a 41-year-old Uriah Faber. If Simón could prove he’s improved against one of Faber’s most famous rivals, that would be fascinating.
Cruz had the better of Faber during his career and beat him twice with UFC gold on the line. If Simón were to defeat him, he would set himself up for some big fights at the top of the division. For Cruz, a win would prove that he is still performing at the level of a top 5 fighter.
#3. Dominick Cruz vs. Song Yadong
Another young bantamweight currently climbing the ranks is Song Yadong. The 24-year-old Chinese fighter is on a three-fight winning streak, has defeated Marlon Vera in the past and is currently ranked no. 10 at bantamweight. This has led to him getting a big-time fight next time out against Cory Sandhagen.
The Sandhagen fight will likely be the toughest test Yadong has faced to date and he is currently the underdog heading into that bout. Given his young age, if he does suffer a defeat, he will likely not fall too far in the rankings. In that event, it would make a lot of sense for him to be Dominick Cruz's next opponent.
Yadong is younger and more marketable than Dvalishvili and Simón, so you can imagine that the UFC would be more keen to give him a big name opponent like Cruz. There is also the fun backstory of Yadong being a student of Urijah Faber at Team Alpha Male.
#2. Dominick Cruz vs. Jose Aldo
Prior to accepting the fight with Marlon Vera, Dominick Cruz indicated that he felt the most demanded match-up he had heard from fans was Jose Aldo. It would be somewhat of a dream fight to see these two former champions square off, given all they have achieved in the UFC and WEC before that.
Back in those days, Aldo was competing in a different weight division [featherweight] but having now moved down to bantamweight, it is possible for a fight to take place between the two legends. To set this bout up, Aldo would likely have to lose this weekend, as a win would likely earn him a title fight. If he does suffer a loss, however, fans can get this fight.
Cruz and Aldo are two pioneers of the sport and fans have long dreamt about how a potential fight between these two men would play out. If Aldo does fail to pick up a victory this Saturday, having them square off in the twilight of their careers would be a perfect next step for both fighters.
#1. Dominick Cruz vs. Sean O’Malley
While the bout with Aldo has been teased in the past, there has also been a lot of talk about the potential of a fight between Cruz and the popular Sean O’Malley. O’Malley is currently scheduled to face Petr Yan in October, if he fails to defeat the Russian, a fight with Cruz would be the one to make.
O’Malley taking on Yan was a match-up that raised some eyebrows. It was deemed undeserved as Sean is yet to win against anybody in the division's top 10.
If the bout against Yan proves to be a step too soon for the youngster, a fight with Cruz would give him the opportunity to get back on track against another former champion. It would be fun to see the greatest bantamweight of all time take on one of the new faces of the division.
