Dominick Cruz gives his thoughts on UFC rankings methodology

UFC legend Dominick Cruz has provided his thoughts on how the ranking system is put together in the promotion.

Throughout the course of his entire run with the UFC, Dominick Cruz was seen as a top guy. He is easily one of the best bantamweight fighters of all time, and he’s been able to prove that time and time again. While he may now be retired from the sport, there’s no denying that he’s left behind an incredible legacy.

Dominick Cruz, among many other fighters, was often ranked in the top 15 of their division. In a recent podcast appearance alongside Demetrious Johnson, Cruz spoke about how the ranking system, in his view, really works.

Dominick Cruz’s view on UFC rankings

“My experience, the way the rankings are made are according to how you wrote your contract last,” Cruz said. “So if I wrote a big contract to fight you and I renegotiate at fight No. 4 and then they ask me for a favor to fight you on one week’s notice for a title, I have an opportunity to renegotiate my contract and I can probably get a good chunk. 

“So let’s say I negotiate really well and I get up to more money than anybody in the division and then I lose to you. I’m still making that money.”

“Now that they’re paying me, you’re telling me, I just lost, they’re going to give me No. 10 now?” Cruz continued. “But I’m making money to fight for a title. They’re not going to pay me title money [for that], never. You see what I mean? So that’s the true ranking is how much your contract is written for.”

“Even if I lost the title, even if I lost two in a row, they’re still giving me top 5 because I’m getting paid so much they want to see me get beat to death for that money,” Cruz said.

“Once a fighter can surrender to the fact that rankings aren’t based off your skill, it’s based off of who wants to watch you, then you’re ranked. … I think that still makes it a sport, it’s just wrapped in a different package and we’re all OK with it or we’re not,” Cruz said. “I still signed up. I’m still here. I’m still going to do it. I’m still going to sign.”

Quotes via MMA Fighting