Jon Anik recently sparked a debate by saying that current Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Bantamweight champion, Merab Dvalishvili, is the greatest champion the division has seen. A bold statement to say the least, especially since the UFC play-by-play man is good friends with none other than Dominick Cruz, the man many consider to be the best of all time when it comes to 135-pound fighters.
But if you think “The Dominator” is taking Anik’s comments personal, you are sadly mistaken. During a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Cruz dissected his colleagues comments and says he’s excited to be in the conversation, and used two of the biggest sports stars ever to make his case.
“I think that Jon Anik knows – he makes media, he knows how to do that. That’s my boy. I love that dude,” he said. “The fact that there’s even a conversation with me involved, it’s not for me to decide something like that. I’m not saying it’s this level, but as a parallel you’re talking about Lebron (James) and (Michael) Jordan, right?
“You’re never going to convince me ever, ever, no matter what, under any circumstance that Lebron is better than Jordan. To me. But then you got the latter that’s going to say the opposite. I love that there’s even a conversation. If there’s a conversation, then that’s what this thing is about – and you know what? Merab is making it a conversation, too. Good for him,” he added.
“This dude has run through the ladder. This dude has had to fight up and down the ladder exactly the same way that I did. I had to fight my way through the hardest fights in the division, multiple rematches, before I got my shots. I had to earn every scrap, and I see that similarity in Merab’s fights. I tip my hat to him.”
Cruz won the inaugural UFC Bantamweight title at WEC 53 over 15 years ago, and went on to defend that belt twice before vacating it as a result of nagging injuries in 2011. Upon his return to action, five years and two fights later, Cruz won the title once more by defeating T.J. Dillashaw via split-decision and defended it once against Urijah Faber at UFC 199 before losing it for good to Cody Garbrandt.
Cruz has since retired, leaving behind a memorable highlight reel that dates back to his dominant reign as World Extreme Cagefighting’s (WEC) 135-pound title holder, where he defended the title three straight times.
As far as Dvalishvili is concerned, he will attempt to further add to his ever-impressive roster that includes wins over Jose Aldo, Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan and Umar Nurmagomedov when he goes for his second straight title defense and second win over former champion, Sean O’ Malley, this Saturday night (Sat., June 7, 2025) at UFC 316.
Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 316 fight card right here, starting with the ESPN/ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. ET, before the main card start time at 10 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).
To check out the latest and greatest UFC 316: “Merab vs. O’Malley 2” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.
This story originally appeared on MMA Mania
