What a fight.
It went the distance, and the man who never lost the UFC Bantamweight Championship is on top of the mountain again. Dominick Cruz became the new champion in a five-round split decision over TJ Dillashaw at UFC Fight Night 81 in Boston.
Here are some highlights from the event.
Headliner
Dominick Cruz Def. TJ Dillashaw via Split Decision (48-47, 46-49, 49-46)
All the injuries that Cruz overcame have been well-documented. He was stripped of the title in 2014 after suffering multiple injuries, including a torn ACL in 2012.
UFC vice president of public relations Dave Sholler shared his thoughts after the fight:
The Comeback Kid does it. You can't teach the perseverance shown by Dominick Cruz. Incredible.
— Dave Sholler (@Sholler_UFC) January 18, 2016
Kevin Iole of Yahoo Sports thinks Sports Illustrated has its lock for Sportsman of the Year:
When Sports Illustrated picks the Sportsman of the Year for 2016, you ought to remember Dominick Cruz for what he did overcoming injuries
— Kevin Iole (@KevinI) January 18, 2016
Dillashaw attacked Cruz's legs with powerful kicks, which seemed to give him the advantage in the second round. But Cruz did something that no other fighter had done up to that point: He took Dillashaw down in the second round.
The TD Garden crowd erupted in shock when Bruce Buffer announced the final scorecards and declared Cruz the winner.
Fox Sports UFC tweeted Cruz's post-fight reaction:
"I have some problems with my left foot. It got really bad in the fifth round" ~ Dominick Cruz #UFCBoston
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) January 18, 2016
"Rust does not exist unless you don't train hard enough" ~ Dominick Cruz #UFCBoston
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) January 18, 2016
Overall, this was a fantastic card that included one of the best comeback stories of the year, and Cruz moved to 21-1-0 in his career.
| Prelim Card | Result | Winner | Time Remaining |
| Luke Sanders vs. Maximo Blanco | Submission | Sanders | 1:22 -- 1st round |
| Chris Wade vs. Mehdi Baghdad | Submission | Wade | 0:31 -- 1st round |
| Ed Herman vs. Tim Boetsch | KO | Herman | 3:22 -- 2nd round |
| Patrick Cote vs. Ben Saunders | TKO | Cote | 3:47 -- 2nd round |
| Main Card | Result | Winner | Time Remaining |
| Ross Pearson vs. Francisco Trinaldo | UD | Trinaldo | Completed |
| Travis Browne vs. Matt Mitrione | TKO | Browne | 0:49 -- 3rd round |
| Eddie Alvarez vs. Anthony Pettis | Split Dec. | Alvarez | Completed |
| Dominick Cruz vs. TJ Dillashaw - UFC Bantamweight Championship | Split Dec. | Cruz | Completed |
UFC.com
Notable Preliminary Highlights
Luke Sanders Def. Maximo Blanco via Submission (1:22 Remaining in Round 1)
What a UFC debut for Luke Sanders.
Coming into the Octagon with an MMA record of 10-0-0, Sanders saw his UFC debut end quickly with Maximo Blanco tapping out to a rear-naked choke with one minute, 22 seconds remaining in the first round.
A swift left hook from Sanders sent Blanco to the ground, which gave Sanders an opening to apply the submission and make Blanco tap instantly. Fox Sports UFC shared footage of the first-round victory for Sanders:
1st RD knockdown + submission finish? Now THAT is how you make a @UFC debut! Well done, @CoolHandMMA. #UFCBoston https://t.co/WKTtECP9s3
— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) January 18, 2016
AXS TV Fights offered some props to the 11-0-0 Sanders:
Still undefeated!! Well done @coolhandmma! Great @ufc debut! #UFCBoston
— AXS TV Fights (@AXSTVFights) January 18, 2016
Bleacher Report's Jeremy Botter also chimed in with his thoughts
Wow, Luke Sanders. That was an incredible finish.
— Jeremy Botter (@jeremybotter) January 18, 2016
This was only his debut, so big things could be on the horizon for Sanders. He has a quality submission repertoire and showed he has quick hands. He's a name to look out for as he rises in the featherweight rankings.
Chris Wade Def. Mehdi Baghdad via Submission (0:31 Remaining in Round 1)
Chris Wade has now fought four times in the UFC, and he has yet to lose.
Wade also won via rear-naked choke, taking out Mehdi Baghdad with 31 seconds left in the first round.
The fight was lackadaisical and lacked offense from either fighter, but Wade took control at around the two-minute mark. He put his weight on Baghdad's back, getting into a position where Baghdad couldn't counter. Wade applied the rear-naked choke with under a minute remaining to earn the victory.
SB Nation's Luke Thomas pointed out how one-sided the fight was:
In all seriousness, excellent job riding and maintaining control by Chris Wade. Utterly dominant.
— Luke Thomas (@SBNLukeThomas) January 18, 2016
It wasn't a pretty contest, but Wade showed the gap in talent between him and the newcomer.
Main Card Highlights
Francisco Trinaldo Def. Ross Pearson via Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
In the first fight of the night that went the distance, Brazilian native Francisco Trinaldo won by unanimous decision over Ross Pearson.
Two judges had Trinaldo win all three rounds, but it was closer to the 29-28 score.
Trinaldo won for the fifth straight time in the lightweight division, which put him in good company, per Mike Bohn of USA Today:
Francisco Trinaldo's 5-fight UFC win-streak at lightweight is tied for third longest in the division behind Ferguson (7) & Nurmagomedov (6).
— Mike Bohn (@MikeBohnMMA) January 18, 2016
Middleweight fighter Michael Bisping didn't agree with the judges:
How anyone could score that last round for Trinaldo is beyond me. Well done @RossTheRealDeal Great fight. Chin up pal.
— michael (@bisping) January 18, 2016
For a night that had plenty of early-round conclusions, this was a great start for the main card. Trinaldo cut Pearson above his eye and also got a few good shots in around the nose. Pearson tried to stay on the offensive but couldn't.
Travis Browne Def. Matt Mitrione via TKO (4:09 Remaining in Round 3)
If you're squeamish and don't like nasty-looking eye injuries, skip over this part.
Travis Browne defeated Matt Mitrione, but not without some controversy and pain along the way. Browne inadvertently poked Mitrione in the eye with his thumb twice.
That threw off Mitrione enough for Browne to get the advantage in the fight and eventually win by technical knockout.
As the fight went on, Mitrione's right eye was swollen shut (Warning: graphic image).
The Boston crowd was not fond of Browne by the time the referee called for the bell and showered him with boos. The UFC provided a clip of Browne's slam that eventually led to the victory:
HUGE slam by @TravisBrowneMMA! That's POWER! #UFCBoston https://t.co/t7Ea11RWi7
— #UFCBoston (@ufc) January 18, 2016
Browne didn't appear to intentionally hurt Mitrione and purposefully go for the eye. Mitrione was fine enough to continue on with the fight, and he fought valiantly. But Browne got a much-needed win, albeit in an odd way.
Eddie Alvarez Def. Anthony Pettis via Split Decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
Eddie Alvarez won. So why was he complaining afterward? Exhibit A, per Eduard Cauich of the Los Angeles Times:
Eddie Alvarez: “I don’t know what went on there or who scored it for Pettis, but that guy must have been watching a different fight" #UFC
— Eduard Cauich (@ecauich) January 18, 2016
It was the closest fight of the night and could've gone either way, but Alvarez found a way to edge out Anthony Pettis, the No. 1 contender in the lightweight division, in a split decision.
This clip from the first round, courtesy of the UFC, showed what kind of fight it turned out to be:
Good action in the first round of this fight w/ @ShowtimePettis and @EAlvarezFight! #UFCBoston https://t.co/4txUSWSDvX
— #UFCBoston (@ufc) January 18, 2016
This was a big win for Alvarez, who may have climbed up a few spots in the division and could become the newest contender for Rafael dos Anjos' championship.
