Dominick Cruz lands a leg kick against Cody Garbrandt in their encounter at UFC 2017 last Dec. 30, 2016. (Photo : Getty Images/Christian Petersen)
MMA star Phil Davis may have backed the wrong fighter when he said that former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz will "trash" now champion Cody Garbrandt. However, there may be a hint of bias involved in this statement, as the one Davis believes would deliver na "a** kicking" is actually his close friend and training partner.
"Nobody stands a chance against Dominick Cruz," Davis told TMZ in an interview. The current Bellator light heavyweight champions has praised Cruz's form in training, which he describes as dominant. Davis also added in his interview that Garbrandt had "zero percent" chance of dethroning Cruz.
Well now Davis may want to rethink a couple of the things he said. Garbrandt came into his UFC 207 bout undefeated and his record came out unscathed.
Garbrandt utilized his superior stand-up game to score big points across all five rounds of the championship contest. Both fighters attempted to exchange heavy blows, but it was Garbrandt who got the upper hand in this department and scored more points in the eyes of fight analysts and judges alike, according to Bleacher Report.
He also used his massively improved takedown defense to avoid what Cruz wanted, which was taking the fight to the ground. These two things masterfully countered Cruz's game plan and the now former champion was unable to adjust accordingly.
It was no secret that the disdain between these two fighters grew exponentially during the buildup to their contest last Dec. 30, 2016. It came as no surprise to fight fans that this loathing had managed to spill over to the Octagon during their fight. Garbrandt even showboated during the fight, which may have thrown off Cruz.
So much was the taunting from Garbrandt, in fact, that his showboating became a major talking point amongst fight fans. This seeming comfort in the ring capped off an absolutely dominant performance from Garbrandt who had seemed to succumb to Cruz's mind games prior to the fight. However, he managed to compose himself and is now the bantamweight champion of the UFC.
Cruz is looking to bounce back from this loss. Both fighters now have newfound respect for each other and will be hoping for a rematch in the near future.
Watch the highlight of Cody Garbrandt's win over Dominick Cruz below:
