Dominick Cruz not listening to retirement talk, certain he can return better than ever

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It is hard to come up with an elite athlete who has dealt with as many injuries that has plagued prime years of competition like former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz.

“The Dominator” looked to be well on his way to becoming the next big thing inside the Octagon back in 2011 after defending his title against Urijah Faber and Demetrious Johnson.

Unfortunately for the champ, two ACL injuries followed by a groin tear had Cruz stripped of his title and watching on the sidelines for nearly three years.

After countless hours in physical therapy, Cruz returned to the Octagon this past September, knocking out the notoriously durable Takeya Mizugaki in just 61 seconds.

The victory was as satisfying as we had ever seen inside the Octagon, and no one deserved it as much as Cruz. After the finish, Dana White announced Cruz would get his chance to re-earn his title by taking on the current champioN TJ Dillashaw in early 2015.

Then the injury bug came back as Cruz begrudgingly announced another ACL injury that will require him to go under the knife. With fans calling for his retirement, Cruz told MMAfighting that the idea has yet to cross his mind.

For me to retire, for me to think about stopping and to not put my head down and do the (physical therapy) is absolutely insane to me, because this is what I want to do.

It’s another mountain to climb. I’m fully capable of handling this mountain. I have all the tools, I have the age and I have the mindset to handle this.

Why can’t I do it? Why can’t I come back and be stronger than ever? There’s no question I can do it, in my mind. I truly, truly believe after I get my right knee fixed, it’ll be stronger than it was before. It’s basically like getting two brand new knees.

Cruz certainly has the mindset to help him persevere, so could we potentially see “The Dominator” back in the Octagon by year’s end? Lets hope so.