UFC 199 results: Cruz dominates Faber to defend bantamweight championship

Dominick Cruz is still the best bantamweight in the world. In a defining grudge match against Urijah Faber, Cruz took the trilogy bout with another strong performance, which included nearly finishing his bitter rival in the 2nd round. here's how the fight played out.

Takedown by Cruz in the first 30 seconds as the pro-Faber crowd was quickly silenced. They scrambled and Cruz got hold of Faber's back against the fence as Faber looked to turn his hips. Faber's pants were falling down but Herb Dean took care of that. Body kick by the champion. Good straight right by Faber and then a takedown by Urijah, but Cruz scrambled on top. Faber got back to his feet and Cruz had him pinned against the fence. Urijah let go of a non-threatening standing guillotine choke. Charging right by Faber. Cruz came up short with the jab but got an inside leg kick. Both men whiffed on punches. Reactive takedown by Cruz was stuffed. Two jabs and a right hand by Cruz. Another Cruz jab.

Faber missed with a head kick to start the 2nd round. Big left hand knocks Faber down and Cruz had his chance to finish him but couldn't. Cruz went for the kill as Faber was clearly still not fully recovered. Just missed with a head kick as Faber ducked for a single. Two jabs by Cruz and a leg kick. Another hard leg kick by Cruz. Faber consistently getting jabbed by the champion. Whiff by Faber and a whiffing left by Cruz. Another leg kick by Cruz. Counter right hand by Faber after a Cruz leg kick. Urijah got in a right hand over the top but Cruz got the body shot. to end the round.

Vicious leg kick by Cruz rushing forward in round 3. Faber with a pushing punch that caught Cruz off-balance but otherwise wasn't a knockdown. He tagged Urijah back with a power punch. Leg kick and a right upstairs by the champ. Pair of body shots by Cruz but only one got through. Swinging left tagged Faber again. Urijah struggling to pull the trigger. Lunging uppercut by Faber at the halfway point of the fight. Another left hook on the exit by Cruz. Dominick misses on a right to the body. Faber's kick is caught and he eats another punch. Cruz is short on a right hand and Faber counters with a short left. They both traded punches but didn't land anything convincing. Faber pushed Cruz after the horn sounded.

Faber continued to headhunt to no positive outcome. Jab by Cruz got to Faber again. Urijah half-heartedly went for a takedown which Cruz shucked off. More effective movement and another stiff jab by Cruz. Faber just unable to land anything cleanly, as is always hard to do on Cruz. Right hand by Cruz and now he attacks and drops Faber again. Strikes on the ground and Faber's in trouble but couldn't finish him as he got back up. Good right by Faber but nothing else to follow up on it. End of round 4.

Great combination of punches and leg kicks and high kicks by Faber, who was clearly flustered, already behind on the scorecards. Right hand by Faber came through flush. Cruz popping that jab again. Now a left hook at the end of a three-punch combo. Right hand by Faber but Cruz sought control of Faber's back. Urijah denied him both hooks as he got to his feet. Cruz spun him around and then kicked him on the break. Takedown by Cruz is stuffed but then as Faber gets up he eats an uppercut. Faber jabbed the knee, then Cruz took Faber down and stepped into side control. Faber scrambled and ... nearly had his pants fall down again. Perhaps a fitting end to the fight, as Cruz dominated Faber from rounds 2-5. Final 15 seconds and Faber couldn't land a thing. Cruz takes the rivalry 2-1.

Official result: Dominick Cruz def. Urijah Faber by unanimous decision (50-45, 50-45, 49-46) to remain UFC bantamweight champion