Ever since T.J. Dillashaw retained his bantamweight championship and thereby eliminated Cody Garbrandt from the title conversation for the foreseeable future, the top-ranked bantamweight have been vying for a title shot…with their mouths. Dominick Cruz, the once kingpin of the division, believes that it’s a no-brainer that he should get Dillashaw next for the bantamweight title shot.
“I know I deserve that title shot,” Cruz said on The Ariel Helwani MMA Show. “Because I defended that title more times than anyone in the history of the division. The problem is, I beat him already. You can’t be the best unless you beat the guy that beat you. It’s just common sense. Everybody in the world knows that, including him.”
Marlon Moraes and Raphael Assuncao both recently stated their cases on Twitter. First, Moraes listed his résumé:
My resume:
1)John Dodson top 5 at the time
2) aljamain sterling – 1:07 seconds ESPN SC highlight
3)jimmy rivera :33 seconds also on ESPN sports center
You tell me who deserves this @danawhite @seanshelby— Marlon Moraes (@MMARLONMORAES) August 6, 2018
“My resume: 1)John Dodson top 5 at the time 2) aljamain sterling – 1:07 seconds ESPN SC highlight 3)jimmy rivera :33 seconds also on ESPN sports center You tell me who deserves this,” Moraes wrote.
Raphael Assuncao made his case for the shot, reminding the bantamweight champion that the scorecard between the two is even:
Call me the” professional” the good guy ,whatever …I’m the #1 guy in this division behind the champion (and we are 1-1) ??
— Raphael Assuncao (@RaphaAssuncao) August 5, 2018
“Call me the ‘professional’ the good guy, whatever …I’m the #1 guy in this division behind the champion (and we are 1-1),” wrote Assuncao.
John Lineker, for one, is tired of all the talking and waiting, and he let all three contenders know about it:
“ Everyone just waiting? Whats the matter with these guys? @DominickCruz ? @RaphaAssuncao ? @MMARLONMORAES ? Anybody else home? Do I have to go to 155 to have some fun?
— John Lineker (@johnlineker) August 29, 2018
“Everyone just waiting? Whats the matter with these guys? @DominickCruz ? @RaphaAssuncao ? @MMARLONMORAES ? Anybody else home? Do I have to go to 155 to have some fun?” asked a frustrated Lineker.
As Lineker eagerly tries to land his next fight, the only thing for us to do in the meanwhile is join Dominick Cruz, Raphael Assuncao, Marlon Moraes, and a begrudging John Lineker in waiting to see how the bantamweight division plays out.
How would you book Dominick Cruz, Raphael Assuncao, Marlon Moraes and John Lineker right now to unclog the bantamweight division?
