Dominick Cruz reportedly set to meet Casey Kenney at UFC 259 in March
According to a report from MMAJunkie, former WEC and UFC bantamweight champion and current commentator Dominick Cruz is set to return to the octagon against Casey Kenney at UFC 259 on March 6.
The 35-year-old Cruz, a man many consider to be amongst the best bantamweights of all-time, has dealt with an unfortunate amount of injuries throughout his career, which has, at times, limited his activity. Prior to coming up short against then-champion Henry Cejudo at UFC 249 in May, for example, “The Dominator” hadn’t competed since 2016.
Despite his injuries and lack of activity, however, there’s no denying Cruz’s accomplishments. Currently, he’s riding a two-fight losing streak, as he lost to Cody Garbrandt prior to losing to Cejudo, but before that, he had won 12-straight fights.
Overall, the former titleholder is 22-3 and holds victories over the likes of Urijah Faber, Ian McCall, Joseph Benavidez, Demetrious Johnson, and T.J. Dillashaw. In addition, this bout against Kenney will be Cruz’s first non-title fight in more than six years.
The 29-year-old Kenney, meanwhile, is a former interim LFA flyweight champion as well as a former interim LFA bantamweight champion. He made his UFC debut in 2019 and has gone 5-1 since with his only loss being a decision defeat against rising contender Merab Dvalishvili.
Most recently, Kenney has won three-straight bouts including victories over Louis Smolka, Heili Alateng, and Nathaniel Wood. This fight against Dominick Cruz represents a clear jump up in competition for Kenney, as the former champion undoubtedly represents the toughest test of his career.
As of this moment, UFC 259 does not have a location, venue, or main event, although UFC President Dana White has previously said that he’s targeting the heavyweight title rematch between champion Stipe Miocic and Francis Ngannou for March, so perhaps that’s a possibility.
