By Chris Howie
MMANEWS.COM Staff Writer
Multiple knee surgeries have kept UFC Bantamweight Champion Dominick Cruz on the shelf and by the time he does return it will likely be over two years since his last bout.
It has been speculated that UFC President Dana White would strip Cruz of his title, which is something Cruz himself hopes doesn't happen:
“I believe that's the way it should be which is me fighting the champion when I come back, which I will come back,” said Cruz. “It's no question in my mind and anybody that's counting me out is crazy. Because I've been counted out before, I've been the guy that wasn't supposed to win several times, and I've always figured it out. It's who I am, it's how I do it, and I'm going to do it right.
“Let's be honest, Dana White is the business owner. He's the one that runs this entire organization and the second you start thinking you're calling the shots in a business that Dana White and the Fertitta's built, is when you have a rude awakening of you don't control it, they do. It's their business and I let them make the business decisions.
“In a perfect world, I keep my title and I come back and beat down Barao. In the business world, I don't know how Dana's visualizing this situation. I don't know what he's dealing with.”
“I work for the UFC and I love everything that they've done for me, and that's about all I can say. I'm preparing to come back and fight for my title. That's all I can do, I can't make the decision. That's up to Dana. No doubt in my mind that I'm still the champion, I'm still the best in the world, and when I come back I will do just fine against a guy like Renan Barao.”
“Everybody loves a comeback, especially a comeback in a situation that is not easy to return to.”
Props: Bleacher Report
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