Improved Cruz expects better result vs. Faber

Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is adamant that just about every aspect of his game has evolved since suffering the only loss of his career to Urijah Faber in 2007.

As he prepares for the rematch tonight in the main event of UFC 132 at the MGM Grand Garden, he says not a whole lot about Faber looks different from their first meeting.

"The haircut and the years," Cruz said.

Faber, then the World Extreme Cagefighting featherweight champion, steamrolled an overmatched Cruz in the first meeting, submitting him with a guillotine 98 seconds into the bout.

Cruz, 25, has been on a tear ever since.

"You can look at my past fights and see a difference in every fight since I fought him," said Cruz, who will make his UFC debut tonight.

He dropped to bantamweight two fights later and became WEC champion in less than two years. Now 17-1, he is considered the top 135-pounder in the world and a consensus top 10 pound-for-pound choice.

Still, he says no matter what he accomplishes, he is always asked about when he is going to settle the score with Faber.

"I've been a champion for a while now," Cruz said, "and right after I won the title, there were questions about Urijah Faber and not questions about how well I did to win my title. I'm ready for those questions to stop. I'm ready to prove that I'm the champion that I am."

Cruz says the fighter Faber will see tonight will barely resemble the one he beat four years ago.

"My jiu-jitsu is light years better, and my grappling," Cruz said. "I think I have out-wrestled some of the best wrestlers in my division. My striking (has improved), as well. I feel like I'm excelling everywhere. I feel like I've grown into my body better, and I feel stronger and faster than I've ever been before."

Faber, 32, agrees that Cruz has looked much better in recent fights, but Faber said he brings a different dynamic than the champion has seen.

"It's one thing to see Dominick in there looking good against pretty good fighters, and it's another thing to see him in there against me," Faber said.

If Faber wants to duplicate his victory, he probably will need to figure out the unorthodox movement of Cruz, who utilizes near constant motion to create striking angles.

Faber says that while it appears there is no rhyme or reason to Cruz's movement, he has seen some consistency to what he does in watching film. The champion counters that Faber has played a large role in helping train Joseph Benavidez, whom Cruz has beaten twice by unanimous decision in the past two years.

One other change from four years ago is the larger cage used in UFC fights. Cruz said he thinks it will help him, and Faber says he doesn't plan on trying to slow down the fight.

The size of the cage should matter even less to Wanderlei Silva and Chris Leben. Both middleweights are straightforward, aggressive strikers who are likely to come out swinging from the opening bell.

Also on the card, lightweight Tito Ortiz, 36, will look to save his career when he takes on Ryan Bader. UFC president Dana White said Thursday that Ortiz is in a must-win situation after going 0-4-1 in five fights since 2006.

A welterweight bout between possible title contenders Carlos Condit and Dong Hyun Kim and a lightweight fight matching Dennis Siver and Matt Wiman round out the main card, which airs live on pay per view at 6 p.m.

Two lightweight bouts will be featured on Spike TV (Cable 29) at 5 p.m. Melvin Guillard looks to continue his winning streak and put his name officially in the title mix when he takes on three-time NCAA All-America wrestler Shane Roller. Also, George Sotiropoulos meets Rafael dos Anjos.

The remaining four fights will air live on Facebook, beginning at 3:15 p.m. That portion of the card features former WEC champion Brian Bowles and Las Vegans Anthony Njokuani and Brad Tavares.

Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509.