With Dominick Cruz back in UFC mix, Urijah Faber rivalry again heats up

It appears Dominick Cruz‘s three-year layoff has done little to weaken his rivalry with Urijah Faber and the rest of the Team Alpha Male camp.

After Cruz (20-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) returned from an extended injury layoff to steamroll Takeya Mizugaki (20-8-2 MMA, 7-3 MMA) on Saturday at UFC 178, the former bantamweight champ took a shot at the “Alpha Fails” in his post-fight interview.

Faber then headed to Twitter to respond:

During the post-UFC 178 show, Cruz was asked about the tweet (check out the video above). Cruz, who gets the next shot at reigning bantamweight champ (and Team Alpha Male fighter) T.J. Dillashaw (11-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC), avenged a 2007 WEC title loss to Faber (31-7 MMA, 7-3 UFC) with a UFC title win in 2011. However, the rivalry never ended.

“I think Faber needs to keep coaching, keep trying to do his thing, because he obviously didn’t listen to Dillashaw’s coach (Duane ‘Bang’ Ludwig), and he hasn’t gotten any better,” Cruz said after UFC 178. “I think the record that I know Faber for is the most consecutive UFC title tries and (losses). I mean it’s got to be a record. I think he lost like seven in a row.”

Even before UFC 178, Faber said he anticipated a rubber match with Cruz:

With Cruz, who was stripped of the belt during his reovery, now back in the title mix and apparently healthy, his rivalry with Team Alpha Male is unlikely to end soon. Dillashaw is ranked No. 1 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA bantamweight rankings while Faber is No. 3. (Cruz will re-enter the updated rankings on Tuesday now that he’s eligible again.)

For complete coverage of UFC 178, check out the UFC Events section of the site.