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UFC Fight Night 81 - Dillashaw vs Cruz.

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AwesomeSauce

MagsMoonshine
Cruz got takedowns but didn't do anything with them. Judges score them too high. If he held him down and controlled then I would score it more.

Cruz better defend the belt. At least with TJ we had chances for more exciting fights.
 
Of course the kicks lead to something meaningful, they hurt Cruz. Hurt him far more than anything else hurt either fighter in the fight.

That's like saying someone landed stiff jabs all night, but it didn't lead to a knockdown or a finish so they shouldn't matter.

If the dude landing stiff jabs all night was outperformed in multiple other areas of the fight then those stiff jabs don't suddenly become more valuable in judging than everything else.

You're seriously sitting here and saying "Those handful of leg kicks were harder than all the other strikes so they should turn the tide of the total judging" even though they came way late in the fight, after Dillashaw already lost too many rounds, and Cruz landed more significant strikes overall in addition to having more takedowns, and pressed the issue on the fight too.

If that's how you judge fights.. who hits the hardest ignoring every other aspect of the fight.. then why even have fights? Let's just let dudes Roshambo each other for championship belts, right?
 

AwesomeSauce

MagsMoonshine
Which would've mattered had they led to something meaningful. TJ never captilized on them so wtf do they really matter in the course of the fight? TJ had moments where he pressed but so did Cruz and Cruz secured more takedowns.

Round by Round Cruz took the first 3. 4th a toss up and 5th Dillashaw.

Cruz's takedowns didn't lead to anything meaningful, but those won him the rounds. And TJ pressed more than Cruz did.
 
I'm not even mad at the decision. I'm still pissed about Lawler/Condit. The judging is so all over the place its so infuriating.
 
Cruz's takedowns didn't lead to anything meaningful, but those won him the rounds. And TJ pressed more than Cruz did.

Did they win him those rounds? Because he also hit the hell out of TJ while evading most of TJ's strikes in the first 3 rounds.

Call both 49-46 cards outliers. 48-47 should've been the score no matter the winner. That means either Cruz wins the first 3 or Dillashaw wins 1,4, and 5. Cruz was scoring and styling other ways.

Edit: I don't know that TJ pressed more that Cruz did. It was close to even on that. But the thing about pressure is that it's not a "oh this guy did it 55% of the time and the other guy 45% of the time, so Mr. 55% wins." It's there to counteract guys who literally stand around and do not fight because they're that extreme of a counter striker. That's not what happened tonight, so you can't say "Dillashaw pushed the fight all night" because he didn't. They Traded pressure, making that an even call.
 

AwesomeSauce

MagsMoonshine
I had it 48-47 no matter the winner. It's not a robbery or anything. I'm just curious, I felt like I saw TJ landing the harder shots throughout. Cruz landed good shots too, but I felt his volume and output were a lot lower than I'm used to seeing from him although he seemed to be throwing shots with more power.
 
Time for UFC to go the way of boxing and fade out. Dancing and running back the whole time is not a champion.

I didn't care who win but this dude is as "exciting" as Mayweather. Run run run till you win the match.

For everyone saying Cruz is running or a point fighter, you don't understand what you are seeing.

The videos breaking down his technique from BJJ Scout are like a college crash course in movement and footwork.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qPtYaBY1V8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNp3NmM9180

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFIvCBuwsPc
 
Ariel may be lowkey trying to get KenFlo reinstated by going in on FS1. Calling out the lack of a point deduction in the Browne/Mitrione fight by saying "It almost pays to cheat (if there's no point deduction)" and following it up with "Shoulder seperation...(Mitirione's) Last fight on his UFC Contract, 37 years old... who knows if we ever see him again"

Ariel moving opening those behind the scenes curtains a bit more than they usually get opened on this post fight shows.
 

BadAss2961

Member
If the dude landing stiff jabs all night was outperformed in multiple other areas of the fight then those stiff jabs don't suddenly become more valuable in judging than everything else.

You're seriously sitting here and saying "Those handful of leg kicks were harder than all the other strikes so they should turn the tide of the total judging" even though they came way late in the fight, after Dillashaw already lost too many rounds, and Cruz landed more significant strikes overall in addition to having more takedowns, and pressed the issue on the fight too.

If that's how you judge fights.. who hits the hardest ignoring every other aspect of the fight.. then why even have fights? Let's just let dudes Roshambo each other for championship belts, right?
Cruz didn't land anything memorable the entire fight. He was running and point-fighting, which as a challenger is fine if you can dominate the fight that way and take minimal damage, but that wasn't the case here. He faded. I saw the momentum turning in the 3rd, then TJ won the championship rounds.

I remember the 3rd being pretty close, and there's two cases in which close rounds where nothing big happens usually go to; the champion, and the aggressor. TJ was both.
 
Cruz didn't land anything memorable the entire fight. He was running and point-fighting, which as a challenger is fine if you can dominate the fight that way and take minimal damage, but that wasn't the case here. He faded. I saw the momentum turning in the 3rd, then TJ won the championship rounds.

I remember the 3rd being pretty close. There's two cases in which close rounds where nothing big happens usually go to; the champion, and the aggressor. TJ was both.

3rd round was not close. At all.

The fight is scored round by round. It doesn't matter if Cruz faded. So long as he isn't stopped.. an early lead in the cards means a win. This is how it works and how it's always worked.

And calling rounds 4 and 5 "Championship Rounds" is such a shitty move to try to make them seem more important. Let the UFC sell those wolf tickets on their own, they don't need your help.

Any fighter, in any championship fight takes the majority of the rounds early on? Merely has to survive the remaining rounds without losing a point. It is what it is.
 

BadAss2961

Member
3rd round was not close. At all.

The fight is scored round by round. It doesn't matter if Cruz faded. So long as he isn't stopped.. an early lead in the cards means a win. This is how it works and how it's always worked.

And calling rounds 4 and 5 "Championship Rounds" is such a shitty move to try to make them seem more important. Let the UFC sell those wolf tickets on their own, they don't need your help.

Any fighter, in any championship fight takes the majority of the rounds early on? Merely has to survive the remaining rounds without losing a point. It is what it is.
I'm not even trying to say the championship rounds matter more. I'm saying Cruz wasn't doing enough to be given close rounds, and that TJ was the one who finished the fight.

The three takedowns that lead to no punishment or ground control were Cruz's best points.
 
What'd he say/do? Not watching cause the gf is asleep (I should be too)
Was asked if he'd rematch Matt to put the controversy to rest and he stared the reporter down in an intimidating way and asked, what controversy? Do you think there's controversy? And then some incomprehensible thing about a guy jumping in to defend himself; I guess he meant cuz Matt kept fighting after the second poke.
 
I'm not even trying to say the championship rounds matter more. I'm saying Cruz wasn't doing enough to be given close rounds, and that TJ was the one who finished the fight.

The three takedowns that lead to no punishment or ground control were Cruz's best points.

Nah. Volume of strikes in the first 3 rounds goes to Cruz. Especially Accuracy. That changes over the last two rounds but being that the fight is score Round by Round, again, it doesn't matter.

And they both "finished the fight." There was no stoppage. So you're either trolling with the loaded language now or you're really naive with how you're saying what you're saying.
 

BadAss2961

Member
Nah. Volume of strikes in the first 3 rounds goes to Cruz. Especially Accuracy. That changes over the last two rounds but being that the fight is score Round by Round, again, it doesn't matter.

And they both "finished the fight." There was no stoppage. So you're either trolling with the loaded language now or you're really naive with how you're saying what you're saying.
TJ finished stronger, obviously.

You emphasize round by round as if I don't understand that, but my whole case from jump is that Cruz wasn't doing enough to win said rounds. It wasn't a decisive victory at all.
 
TJ finished stronger, obviously.

You emphasize round by round as if I don't understand that, but my whole case from jump is that Cruz wasn't doing enough to win said rounds. It wasn't a decisive victory at all.

Then I guess there isn't much else to say. Rounds 1,2, and 3 were very clearly a case of Cruz out landing Dillashaw while also trading pressure with Dillashaw's strikes being completely ineffective by the end of the 3rd.

So maybe watch the fight again or something? /shrug
 

BadAss2961

Member
Then I guess there isn't much else to say. Rounds 1,2, and 3 were very clearly a case of Cruz out landing Dillashaw while also trading pressure with Dillashaw's strikes being completely ineffective by the end of the 3rd.

So maybe watch the fight again or something? /shrug
Here's the fight on paper.

R4nOfb0.jpg


Every round was "close" with takedowns giving Cruz a fair edge early. The 3rd is almost dead even but with a clear aggressor.

TJ pushed this whole fight. I don't like the challenger getting the nod the way the fight played out.
 

scabro

Member
Here's the fight on paper.

R4nOfb0.jpg


Every round was "close" with takedowns giving Cruz a fair edge early. The 3rd is almost dead even but with a clear aggressor.

TJ pushed this whole fight. I don't like the challenger getting the nod the way the fight played out.

i had it 3-2 for Cruz in real time, but i wouldn't be surprised if on rewatch Cruz didn't land a fair bit of the shots that it looked like he did. During the post fight FS1 show almost every slowmo highlight that was supposed to be in Cruz' favor showed the punches landing on TJ's arms, gloves, or just glancing altogether.
 
Here's the fight on paper.

R4nOfb0.jpg


Every round was "close" with takedowns giving Cruz a fair edge early. The 3rd is almost dead even but with a clear aggressor.

TJ pushed this whole fight. I don't like the challenger getting the nod the way the fight played out.

Swinging more doesn't make you an aggressor by neccessity. So trying to cite total strikes thrown as a signal of aggression is terrible. Aggression means moving forward and trying to engage your opponent.

TJ came up short man.
 

AwesomeSauce

MagsMoonshine
Swinging more doesn't make you an aggressor by neccessity. So trying to cite total strikes thrown as a signal of aggression is terrible. Aggression means moving forward and trying to engage your opponent.

TJ came up short man.

TJ might have come up short, but it felt like he came in here as the challenger. Also, check the fight again, although TJ threw a lot, he landed the harder shots.

I liked that Cruz was actually throwing punches with power now. But it wasn't as clear cut as people are saying IMO. 1,2,3 were all close.
 
Matt Mitrione ‏@mattmitrione 13m13 minutes ago

Broken orbital floor. This and the shoulder happened after the 2nd eye poke. I don't think they would've happened
 
TJ might have come up short, but it felt like he came in here as the challenger. Also, check the fight again, although TJ threw a lot, he landed the harder shots.

TJ landed occasional hard shots that didn't effect Cruz at all in the first 3 rounds. In those first three rounds Cruz not only out landed Dillashaw but part of that was making Dillashaw miss and frustrating him into swinging for big single shots.

You really can't just sit here and look at one or two metrics and hold those up as holy. You have to look at and consider everything, try your damndest to take bias out of your mind, and judge the fight two ways. The first way is how you think it should be, the second how you think the judges will vote due to the overimportance to takedowns.

But what I'm saying here is that hitting an occasional hard strike does not out value being made to swing at air and getting outstruck overall in the round. Especially when those "hard shot" don't do damage.
 

Jezbollah

Member
Awesome job by Cruz - very happy with that result. If Cruz is injured like they say he is (foot) then Faber vs TJ for an interim title has to be the way to go.

Anthony Pettis is at a crossroads in his career IMO. Alvarez basically demo'd a blueprint for all to see on how to beat Pettis - he was ineffective against that grappling. He needs to be better against wrestling or he'll never make it back to title contention.
 

VE3TRO

Formerly Gizmowned
BT Sports stopped the recording for the final round in the Dillashaw Cruz fight so I missed what happened. I expected Cruz to win on points but man its annoying not knowing what happened.
 
So people think TJ punching air and getting combo countered is a W for him? All his power shots grazed Cruz due to excellent foot movement from the Dominator.

Seriously people who think that was boring or Cruz is boring should just go away forever, no need to watch MMA anymore for you. Maybe stick with backyard brawls and world star .
 

zewone

Member
So people think TJ punching air and getting combo countered is a W for him? All his power shots grazed Cruz due to excellent foot movement from the Dominator.

Seriously people who think that was boring or Cruz is boring should just go away forever, no need to watch MMA anymore for you. Maybe stick with backyard brawls and world star .

Same reason people think Lawler won.

He hits harder.
 
There's no comparison between Lawler and TJ . Lawler straight up through bombs that connected completely, Condit just had a damn good chin. That fight was definitely closer than this one but no doubt that Lawler did some major damage in that fight.

TJ threw things that looked like they'd hurt but it either skimmed Cruz face or just completely missed. His actual clean connections of power strikes were few and far in between.
 
Pettis is starting to look like a flash in the pan. He has zero answer when guys just grind him it and don't give him the space and opportunity to get off his flashy shit. Guida's blueprint still works against him.
 
Really great fight to watch. I had it 3-2 for TJ, but it was so close that a win granted to either of them could be understood. Everyone who said Cruz was going to destroy TJ had no idea what the hell they were talking about. As usual, the internet plays armchair ______ and does a horrific job at it, then just rolls with what's popular to do afterward.
 
Wait... You're trying to get brownie points and call people out because the guy that lost didn't lose THAT bad ? Lol.

TJ was a favorite going in and Dom Cruz has fought in one single round of MMA in the past 4 years.
 

AstroLad

Hail to the KING baby
Wait... You're trying to get brownie points and call people out because the guy that lost didn't lose THAT bad ? Lol.

TJ was a favorite going in and Dom Cruz has fought in one single round of MMA in the past 4 years.

Wasn't it pretty much even money? The one thing I found funny was Cruz calling out analysts for not picking him, like...dude...you won a debatable split decision, they're not exactly complete idiots because they didn't pick you. Cruz just seems to have that personality though where he needs to contrive a me-against-the-world scenario to get motivated. Hey whatever works. Probably won't pay too much attention to this division as long as he's on top, kind of like how I don't pay attention to DJ's division.
 
Wait... You're trying to get brownie points and call people out because the guy that lost didn't lose THAT bad ? Lol.

TJ was a favorite going in and Dom Cruz has fought in one single round of MMA in the past 4 years.
I'm not trying to get anything from the internet, so don't put that on me. The hell am I going to do with virtual brownie points that disappear right after you get them anyway lol. I'm saying that a lot of people said TJ would get destroyed, and instead we got a fight that was fairly even, highly competitive, and a bit divisive as far as judging. It's pretty clear what I said, if you read it without pumping agenda into it.
 
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