Could Mighty Mouse Win the Lottery?

In less than 24 hours, Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson will have his shot at being the man to finally solve the riddle that is Dominick Cruz- a fighter who has confounded opponents so far with his movement alone, let alone his quick, accurate strikes and unorthodox wrestling techniques.

It is not hard to understand why, when facing a fighter like Cruz who has beaten opponents so thoroughly- if not viciously- fans and media members alike may see it as if challengers need to sort of “get lucky” to actually beat Cruz.

Admit it, which is easier to imagine: someone beating Cruz in the majority of rounds in a 25 minute fight or someone simply landing a good shot on Cruz that puts him down or finally getting a takedown and nailing him down with a crafty submission? For sure, it seems like defeating an opponent with a style like Cruz’s is akin to winning large jackpots in casino games online – it’s possible, but hard to count on.

To extend the analogy further, someone like Cruz reminds one of trying to beat someone in video poker games who not only has the better cards, but is also better at the mental aspect of the game. Cruz so far has been able to simply out-think and even out-work his opponents en route to successful title defenses. There is still the possibility, though, that if Cruz faces someone who truly challenges him and puts him in danger he could simply press his opponent (lay his cards down, if you will) and put him away, if need be.

Cruz may not have bone-crushing power, but we have seen in many cases that an accumulation of shots from a shifty, active fighter can mean just as much as concussive power in a few punches. After all, it all leads to the same end, right? A referee pulling the victorious fighter off of the defeated adversary. One wonders whether Cruz could resort to such uncharacteristic savagery if he needed to. I wouldn’t bet against it, personally.

Yet, Demetrious Johnson has a fascinating skill set for this title fight, and brings something a little different to the table than other challengers, such as Urijah Faber, Scott Jorgensen and Joseph Benavidez. Out of those three, only Faber seemed the type to “out-work” an opponent as a main strategical focus, and we had already seen him slip out of the “alpha male” role against Jose Aldo before he even stepped in against Cruz.

Johnson, on the other hand, is a scrapper who I just can’t imagine simply letting Cruz dictate the fight for 25 minutes. Make no mistake about it- it was not just skill level or a contrast in styles that led Cruz to win his previous title defenses, but the will to push all the chips in the middle and force the play onto the challenger. I could be wrong, but Johnson seems like the kind of fighter who will go all in and refuse to let Cruz bully him into forgetting to fight his own fight.

Tags: Demetrious Johnson, Dominick Cruz, UFC, UFC 135