T.J.'s head hunting and desperation to land heavy shots really messed him up verses Cruz. Cruz is the most elusive and intuitive mover the UFC has ever seen, and even with merely good movers, the strategy should always be to take away the legs or go to the body, so with Cruz it has to be doubly so, which was what was so thoroughly disappointing and stupid in what Dillashaw kept doing past the 3rd round.
He had decent success with hits to the legs, and it even looked like he hurt Cruz a few times that way, and yet, he didn't maintain that pressure nor look to use it as a base for a more varied attack. Even if he was going to constantly go for the head, why wasn't he finishing off his strike combinations with leg finishers, Aldo or Condit style? Being cold enough to note that Cruz has had endless problems with his knees and so on should also have made them a point to test and attack as well as test Cruz's mental fortitude and nerve to then continue to implement his trademark style. Cruz's ring rust was pretty obvious, too, but by the time he was flagging, T.J. had already burnt himself out, so that negated that.
It's pretty obvious that Cruz is the true champion, however. This was him coming into the ring for a Championship contest, ring rusty and he still slipped and moved like an eel, and as long as his body holds up, he's only going to get better from here - even if there were to be a rematch down the line, the Cruz we saw on Sunday won't be the Cruz that steps back into the octagon as he'll be sharper, smoother and more confident.
It's pretty easy to knock T.J. for all his faults in this fight, but at the same time, you cannot prepare for someone like Cruz via sparring no matter how many partners you get in trying to emulate his style, so I guess a good portion of the fight saw T.J. having to process and assimilate and then accept that he was actually fighting someone faster, more elusive, more intelligent and cunning than him. It does then stand to reason that the first couple of rounds, and the reality he was facing, shocked him, but the great fighters adapt and adjust and try something different, and that's where I thought the head-hunting would die a death and when it didn't, T.J. threw any chance of victory outside of a lucky head kick K.O. of which, he'd tried, whiffed and landed on his ass, numerous times throughout the first few rounds. I bet he's not a happy camper with his performance and will be running through it in his head for some time.
As for Cruz, it's great that he's back. He's a true phenomenon and his movement is a fascinating watch.
He had decent success with hits to the legs, and it even looked like he hurt Cruz a few times that way, and yet, he didn't maintain that pressure nor look to use it as a base for a more varied attack. Even if he was going to constantly go for the head, why wasn't he finishing off his strike combinations with leg finishers, Aldo or Condit style? Being cold enough to note that Cruz has had endless problems with his knees and so on should also have made them a point to test and attack as well as test Cruz's mental fortitude and nerve to then continue to implement his trademark style. Cruz's ring rust was pretty obvious, too, but by the time he was flagging, T.J. had already burnt himself out, so that negated that.
It's pretty obvious that Cruz is the true champion, however. This was him coming into the ring for a Championship contest, ring rusty and he still slipped and moved like an eel, and as long as his body holds up, he's only going to get better from here - even if there were to be a rematch down the line, the Cruz we saw on Sunday won't be the Cruz that steps back into the octagon as he'll be sharper, smoother and more confident.
It's pretty easy to knock T.J. for all his faults in this fight, but at the same time, you cannot prepare for someone like Cruz via sparring no matter how many partners you get in trying to emulate his style, so I guess a good portion of the fight saw T.J. having to process and assimilate and then accept that he was actually fighting someone faster, more elusive, more intelligent and cunning than him. It does then stand to reason that the first couple of rounds, and the reality he was facing, shocked him, but the great fighters adapt and adjust and try something different, and that's where I thought the head-hunting would die a death and when it didn't, T.J. threw any chance of victory outside of a lucky head kick K.O. of which, he'd tried, whiffed and landed on his ass, numerous times throughout the first few rounds. I bet he's not a happy camper with his performance and will be running through it in his head for some time.
As for Cruz, it's great that he's back. He's a true phenomenon and his movement is a fascinating watch.
