After constructing some of the intense rivalries in UFC historical past, Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber are wanting again on their iconic feud.
Formally asserting his retirement from combined martial arts in 2025, Cruz launched a brand-new podcast known as Love & Warfare.
On the inaugural episode, ‘The Dominator’ welcomed Faber, utilizing the previous WEC champion’s look on the present as a chance not solely to bury the hatchet, however to credit score ‘The California Child’ with serving to to advance Cruz’s personal profession.
“Whether or not I needed to do, admit it or not, you have been just about the rocket ship for my profession early on,” Cruz informed Faber. “The loss actually… I respect that. It lit a fireplace underneath my ass dropping to you. And so it’s solely honest, you already know, perhaps we get you on the primary podcast and right here we’re opening up with you.
“Yeah, we’re successful. We’re successful collectively now, which is wild. It’s a win-win. And that’s one thing I’ve been actually targeted on at this stage in my life now could be how as an alternative of creating it like improper and proper, as an alternative of simply all the time making an attempt to win, win-win, how do I create a win-win for the folks round me? And that’s one thing that’s actually necessary to me. And that’s the place the love side of this entire factor comes from.”
Dominick Cruz beat Faber in Again-to-back bouts
Cruz and Faber first crossed paths underneath the WEC banner all the way in which again in 2007. On that night time, Faber entered the bout because the WEC’s reigning featherweight champion whereas Cruz was an unbeaten 9-0.
Faber went on to submit Cruz simply 98 seconds into the opening spherical.
The dangerous blood between the 2 got here to a boiling level three years later when Cruz dropped right down to bantamweight, turning into the first-ever 135-pound UFC champion because of the promotion’s merger with the WEC. Shortly after, Faber adopted Cruz down a weight class, setting the stage for a heated rematch at UFC 132.
This time, Cruz would get his revenge, defeating Faber by way of unanimous resolution within the first-ever UFC bantamweight title combat.
They lastly completed their trilogy in 2016 when Cruz delivered a repeat efficiency, besting Faber on the scorecards at UFC 199.
