Dominick Cruz is destined for the UFC Hall of Fame when he is ready to hang up his gloves. However is he ready yet? The 39-year-old former UFC bantamweight champ is already at the twilight of his career and he knows his chapter will close soon. The same was recently discussed by John McCarthy and Josh Thomson on their show ‘Weighing In.’

The duo had an announcement read by Cruz, himself, where the former bantamweight champion declared that he was ready for one last fight inside the octagon.  He told TMZ Sports, “I’ll tell you, I think I got a last dance. I got one last dance in me. Just go out there and have fun. And when I say fun, I mean fight to the bitter death and see what I have in me.” ‘Big’ John had an ideal scenario for ‘The Dominator’ and stated that he could fight Cody Garbrandt who is also at the edge of his career. Cruz had shared that he wanted a last fight inside the Octagon. 

He has not fought since he lost to Marlon Vera via a 4th-round KO in 2022. Since his defeat, he has largely been working his day job as a color commentator for UFC. Along with that, Cruz has been aiding young athletes at the UFC Performance Institute, but he has also been training himself for a comeback.

Now, the problem is that Cody Garbrandt does not want a rematch with his previous opponent. ‘No Love’ defeated Cruz to win the bantamweight title in 2016 which is his hallmark career win. “Honestly, that fight doesn’t interest me,” Garbrandt disclosed to ESPN in 2023. “What else am I supposed to do with the guy? I mean, go in and knock him out this time? That’s the only thing that would go put a statement or top that. It’s so hard to top that performance.”

‘No Love’ lost to Deiveson Figueiredo, suffering a submission loss at UFC 300. He was supposed to bounce back at UFC Vegas 100 against Miles Johns but had to withdraw for undisclosed reasons. However, he does want to re-sign with the UFC once his contract is done, and disclosed the same on the ‘Jaxxon Podcast’ saying, “(I’m) still going through some things with the UFC. This is my last fight on the contract, so (I’ve) got to get together with them and see what we can come up with. I’d love to (re-sign). I love the UFC – I think especially where the sport is going.” But he does not want to fight Cruz. Then who else does Cruz have as a prospective opponent?

Dominick Cruz and Henry Cejudo rematch after a controversial previous end

There is probably no other fight that screams ‘unfinished business’ more than Henry Cejudo vs Dominick Cruz. Their first fight at UFC 249 had a lot of excitement, and while some fans were happy about Cejudo’s win, others were enraged at the referee’s decision for the stoppage. So this rematch might be an exciting possibility for Cruz before he retires. ‘The Dominator ’ also got into an online scuffle with Cejudo on X (formerly Twitter) after Jon Anik had suggested the rematch.

A rematch against Cejudo would give Cruz a perfect end to his career and the redemption he might be looking for. However, even Sean O’Malley might be an interesting opponent since it will be a matchup between a young UFC star and a legend. Cruz was seen praising ‘Sugar’ previously as well. During an interview on the ‘Anik & Florian’ podcast, the former two-time bantamweight champion expressed his thoughts on Sean O’Malley winning the UFC bantamweight title.

He said, “I love it when you get a guy like that coming in here and shaking things up. Because you look at him in the Yan fight and it was an extremely competitive fight – and that was to me – between him and Vera; Yan, Vera, and Aljo are the toughest fights he had and those are all three very tough fights.” 

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So there are at least two more options other than Cody Garbrandt. Who do you think Dominick Cruz should choose for his last dance? Share your thoughts in the comments below.