Dominick Cruz bags position in the winning column for the first time in a long time. The former UFC bantamweight champion, Cruz, picked up his first victory since 2016 at the UFC 259 game event in Las Vegas this Saturday, March 6.
Dominick Cruz (23-3 MMA, 6-2 UFC) outpointed Casey Kenney (16-3-1 MMA, 5-2 UFC) in a close, back-and-forth split decision. The final decision, however, was in Cruz’s favor. It read as 28-29, 29-28 and 30-27 on the judges’ scorecards. This victory meant a lot as it was his first win since he beat Urijah Faber at UFC 299 on June 4, 2016.
It was a hard-fought battle as both the players were giving a tough competition to each other throughout all the rounds. However, it was in the final round of the APEX that Cruz got a lucky takedown that put him on the top.
Final Minute Takedown Got Cruz To The UFC Win List
Since the beginning, Cruz was seen to be playing with his usual unorthodox footwork. He has been using this trademark style for 6 years and more. Kenney made some progress by kicking at Cruz’s legs throughout the game. However, the UFC bantamweight champion is known for his innovative footwork. Cruz never slowed down despite repeated hits on his legs. He stuck to his unorthodox style and hit Kenney with big shots in every round. This included a shovel left hook in Round 1 and multiple takedown attempts.
In the third round, Kenny was down twice. Dominick landed solid shots from unorthodox angles. Kenney gave a hard fight as well but not with the same consistency.
Cruz mentioned in a statement that the fight in the third round was close. He had anticipated a 1-1. However, he was not ready to give up. So, he took a final takedown attempt that turned out to be successful leaving Dominick in the winner’s column.
