Deiveson Figueiredo, 35, has had a successful run in the UFC flyweight division, with notable wins over Joseph Benavidez, Alex Perez, and Brandon Moreno. However, after losing his title to Moreno in their 4th battle last year, Figueiredo decided to move up to bantamweight.
In an interview with MMA Fighting, Figueiredo said he wants to face former bantamweight champion Cruz in his debut at 135 pounds.
“I’ve talked to my manager after the fight and we came to the conclusion that Dominick Cruz would be a great fight. It would be a great first fight at 135. He’s a former champion, I’m a former champion, so it would be a guy with a name and high level to welcome me at 135. That would be great.
“I’ll go up and represent, I won’t be just another one in the division. I’ll fight the best, no doubt about it. I respect everybody there, they are all excellent fighters, but I’m going there to do my 100 percent.”
“Dominick moves a lot and we know we would have to cut his movement. I would 100 percent explore that and train a lot of wrestling. I’ve been training jiu-jitsu a lot, and would train a lot of wrestling too, especially defensive wrestling.
“Dude is a legend and I know he’s an excellent fighter, he can take people down. I’d block his takedowns and box him hard.”
Cruz, 36, is a former UFC bantamweight champion and has notable wins over fighters like Urijah Faber, Demetrious Johnson, and TJ Dillashaw. However, Cruz has been plagued by injuries in recent years and has only won twice since losing his title to Cody Garbrandt in 2016, and suffered brutal KO loss against Marlon Vera in his latest fight.
Figueiredo’s move up to bantamweight has generated a lot of excitement among UFC fans, and a potential matchup with Cruz would be a high-profile fight for the Brazilian fighter’s debut. However, it remains to be seen if the UFC will book the matchup or if Cruz will be able to return to the octagon after his recent injury struggles.