Dominick Cruz: Champ Dillashaw wants to fight and not talk because 'he's not that smart'

Before he attacks T.J. Dillashaw in the octagon at UFC Fight Night 81, Dominick Cruz has launched a verbal assault on the UFC bantamweight champion.

Cruz (20-1 MMA, 3-0 UFC) has gone all-in on pre-fight banter with Dillashaw (12-2 MMA, 8-2 UFC) ahead of their Jan. 17 title bout, which headlines the FOX Sports 1-televised event at Boston’s TD Garden. The prelims also air on the same channel well as UFC Fight Pass.

Although he admitted trash talk means little for the fight itself, Cruz, No. 2 in the latest USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA bantamweight rankings, criticized No. 1-ranked Dillashaw’s wits on Friday’s pre-fight media conference call and said he doesn’t do enough on the promotional side to build up his fights.

“Talking is just talking, a fight is fighting; T.J. is the type of guy that would rather fight than talk, and I think that’s because he’s not that smart,” Cruz said. “That doesn’t mean he’s not ready to fight on that day. I don’t look at it like it’s any type of advantage other than we’re just in front of the cameras. I don’t want to do these interviews any more than him probably, but I’m there, I’ve got to do them, and I’m going to do them to the best of my ability.

“The truth is, people want to hear what we have to say as athletes and they don’t want to just see what we do as fighters. That’s usually not enough to interest people. That doesn’t sell a lot of tickets. They want to hear why you believe in yourself leading up to the fight on top of going in there and putting on a good performance, so I’m just doing all angles of things. T.J. still hasn’t figured that out yet, but hopefully he’ll figure it out soon and sell some tickets.”

Cruz is not hesitant to share his feelings on Dillashaw, but the champion said he prefers to remain humble and focus on his performance in the fight. That’s worked for him so far, because Dillashaw is on a four-fight winning streak including two successful defenses of the 135-pound belt.

During the time Dillashaw has been fighting and winning, Cruz has been on the sidelines nursing injuries for the majority of the past four years. He’s only competed once since October 2011, and because of that Cruz is considered the betting underdog. He said he’s perfectly content with that position.

“I’ve been out all this time not because I wanted to, but because my injuries wouldn’t let me compete,” Cruz said. “I got hurt around 26 and I knew my age would be on my side in the fact it’s healing. I’ve done that and it’s working for me again, age is still on my side and I feel I’m still in my prime years right now. I’m just as hungry as I ever was to be the best in the world.”

Although Cruz’s career has been plagued by injury in recent years, he said he still has the confidence of a world champion. “The Dominator” is a former UFC and WEC titleholder that never lost the belt, but instead was forced to vacate the gold due frequent injury and inactivity.

Having already experienced the highest of highs and lowest and lows, Cruz said he’s approaching the fight with the mindset that he has everything to gain and nothing to lose. Cruz has already dealt with some of the worst situations an athlete can go through, and after coming out the other he end, he said he’s prepared to put everything on the line in a title-fight opportunity many believed he may not reach.

“I don’t have as much emotion going into it because I feel at peace with myself – I have nothing to lose,” Cruz said. “I’m the underdog coming into this fight, I’ve been out for the past couple years with multiple injuries, so I’m already counted out to an extent, which is fine with me. It gives me peace because I have nothing to lose in this situation. I’m coming in and getting a shot. Fighting is just the cherry on top of a good life that I already live.”

For many years Cruz was considered the undisputed No. 1 bantamweight in the world. However, when he vacated the title he lost that spot to ex-champ Renan Barao, who was eventually beaten twice by Dillashaw in dominant fashion.

While he doesn’t have the verbal ability of Cruz outside of the octagon, Dillashaw has proven to be a deserving and legitimate champion in Cruz’s absence. Cruz said he’s ready to reaffirm his top spot, though, and despite already holding a big advantage in the pre-fight war of words, he said the most important thing is to reclaim his throne when he shares the octagon with Dillashaw at UFC Fight Night 81.

“I believe I’m the best in the world and I believe the order is incorrect and T.J. is just the best at being No. 2,” Cruz said.

For more on UFC Fight Night 81, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.