Dominick Cruz doesn’t think Petr Yan avenging his loss to Merab Dvalishvili is that complicated.
Yan (19-5 MMA, 11-4 UFC) was dominated in a unanimous decision loss to Dvalishvili in March 2023, where Dvalishvili attempted a UFC record 49 takedowns. Yan has since notched three wins in a row to earn himself a rematch against bantamweight champion Dvalishvili (21-4 MMA, 14-2 UFC) in the UFC 323 headliner on Dec. 6 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas (ESPN+ pay-per-view, ESPN2/ESPN+/Disney+/FX).
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So what can Yan do to stop the smothering attack of Dvalishvili in the rematch? Former two-time UFC bantamweight champion and now UFC commentator/analyst Cruz laid it out.
“Just get taken down ten times instead of 50 and you’ll probably win?,” Cruz told MMA Junkie. “Think about that for a second, it’s really that simple. Cut 40 takedowns off, is that possible for Petr Yan? I think it’s very possible. I think the fight analytics are the ones who make the takedowns, I don’t think they know what a takedown is. … But he got like 30 something takedowns on Sandhagen in one fight so, it’s like this is what he does so if you’re Petr Yan, what do you got to do? Well, if I just get it to 10 takedowns instead of 50, I already gave myself a 40 percent better chance.
“This is the thing that I made my style off of is feints, fakes to break the timing and rhythm, and angles. Now if you’re at an angle, there’s no shot. You can’t shoot unless they’re in front of you, and I think that’s why Petr Yan got taken down so much because he always fights at a very straight line. It’s forward, back, forward back. There’s very little side to side with him. He’s got to figure out a way to move side to side, got to find a way to add it in, the lateral movement, and pull Merab into stuff.”
Cruz was widely considered as the greatest bantamweight of all time after capturing and defending both the WEC and UFC belts. But with Dvalishvili’s activity and his chance at making history by breaking the record for most title defenses in the division’s history, many already have “The Machine” at No. 1.
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Cruz pointed to one factor when weighing in on the conversation.
“I don’t think it’s for me to really talk about because I’m in the debate, so it’s hard,” Cruz said. “I’ll just say that I think it’s up to the fans and he’s beating a record, so I’ll give him that, but I think I have six (five) total title defenses (between UFC and WEC). That would mean he’d need another three and let me tell you how hard it is to win three titles. I think that matters.”
To hear more from Cruz ahead of UFC 323, check out his complete appearance on “The Bohnfire” podcast with MMA Junkie senior reporter Mike Bohn.
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC 323: Dominick Cruz gives Petr Yan advice for Dvalishvili rematch
