Dominick Cruz and 4 other UFC legends on the decline

#2. Tony Ferguson

Tony Ferguson is a former interim lightweight champion and the co-owner of the longest win streak in UFC lightweight history. However, Ferguson is also 38 years old. An eclectic fighter with an odd combination of flashy strikes and counter-wrestling tools like D'Arce chokes and other front-choke variations, 'El Cucuy' often fought using pressure as his primary weapon.

He would back his opponents up before unloading on them like an offensive buzzsaw. When foes tried to take him to the ground, Ferguson's use of the butterfly guard and elbows from the bottom rendered him a dangerous foe off his back. However, given how offensively-minded Ferguson has been, he has absorbed a tremendous amount of damage throughout his years as a mixed martial artist, culminating in a life-altering beating against Justin Gaethje.

The loss was Ferguson's first knockout defeat. Unfortunately, it wasn't the last. Ferguson's next 2 bouts were lopsided losses to Charles Oliveira and Beneil Dariush. In both matchups, 'El Cucuy' seemed uncharacteristically gun-shy. More shockingly, he lacked the speed he was once blessed with. On a 3-fight losing streak, he was booked into a fight with Michael Chandler. Although Ferguson did well, he ultimately lost the bout via a devastating KO, bringing his tally to 4 straight losses to cap off his decline.

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#1. Dominick Cruz

Arguably the greatest bantamweight of all time, Dominick Cruz is an inimitable fighter whose unique style earned him significant success in the WEC and UFC. With the exception of his initial encounter with Urijah Faber in WEC days, Cruz was notoriously difficult to strike with. Opponents often miss when trying to crack his chin with their punches. Or at least, that was once the case.

Cruz's style of shifting alignments with his constant stance-switching and exaggerated dipping movements is a double-edged sword. By exiting off of angles every time he dips his head low to either the left or right, he exposes himself to strikes with wide arcs like kicks, especially if they're setup by the straighter punches that his exaggerated movements evade effectively. Despite the holes in his style, Cruz was fast enough to paper the cracks.

However, as age caught up to him, he began to lose a step, sustaining more damage in his last 5 fights than he had in every other fight of his career. Against Cody Garbrandt, Cruz was dropped twice. When he fought Henry Cejudo, he was dropped and TKO'd. While his subsequent bout with Casey Kenney was a typical Cruz affair, his next matchup with Pedro Munhoz again saw Cruz suffer a knockdown even in victory.

Finally, against Marlon Vera, Cruz was knocked unconscious in the 4th round after suffering multiple knockdowns. With speed no longer on his side as the 37-year old declines with age, he is no longer the untouchable Dominick Cruz of old.