The Doggy Bag: ‘What Are They Thinking?!’ Edition

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At this point in time I wonder if Ronda Rousey isn’t more popular, well-known and liked than Dominick Cruz, her 135-pound counterpart. It just seems like Cruz can’t “catch on” as a personality. It’s a no-brainer that the UFC would rather have Urijah Faber win their rubber match, since he’s already a bit of a star, but if Cruz does win, is there any hope for him to become even an average pay-per-view draw or interesting fighter to more casual fans with his style and personality? -- Jackson, Washington D.C.

Tristen Critchfield, associate editor: In this social media-driven society, popularity can be just a “Like” or retweet away. If we use Twitter as a measuring stick, then you are indeed correct: as of Friday afternoon, Rousey had some 7,000 more followers of her account than did Cruz. There’s no shame in being a notch below the recently crowned Strikeforce women’s bantamweight champion, however. Rousey is a legitimate star with the right combination of talent, personality, looks and savvy to capitalize on her moment; it isn’t farfetched to think she could appear on a UFC pay-per-view main card someday.

But I digress. Zuffa LLC is still in the process of building Cruz’s brand, with the first step being his Octagon debut against Faber in the UFC 132 main event last summer. Granted, that fight earned headliner status largely on the basis of Faber’s appeal from his days as the WEC figurehead. Since then, “The Dominator” has fought once, defending his 135-pound strap against Demetrious Johnson on a free Versus card. Given Johnson’s general lack resonance with the casual fan, combined with the fact that the card took place on a college football Saturday night, it’s not surprising that Cruz’s victory generated as little buzz as it did.

That is where “The Ultimate Fighter Live” comes in. Over the course of 13 weeks, fans will get the opportunity to familiarize themselves with Cruz. As a general rule, viewers take more interest in the “TUF” coaches than the contestants, so the champion can only benefit from going head-to-head against his No. 1 foil during that time. A little reality show drama with “The California Kid” can’t but help but boost pay-per-view buys for their UFC 148 showdown. While it would certainly be easier for UFC brass to market Faber as its champion, the time for Cruz to raise his stock has already begun and simply being on “TUF” should do a lot of that work for him. If he beats Faber on July 7 and remains relatively anonymous to the casual fan, then something has gone wrong.

Cruz might never be the type to draw attention to himself, but not all UFC stars have larger-than-life personas. Georges St. Pierre is one of the promotion’s top draws despite his propensity for relatively bland sound bites. “Rush” has also managed to thrive despite not finishing a fight since 2009.

The moral of the story is simple: extended excellence is captivating, no matter the method. With four consecutive title defenses, Cruz is on his way to setting a lofty standard at bantamweight. This is not to say that Cruz will ever reach St. Pierre’s level, but many fans who didn’t make time for the WEC are still warming to the 135-pound division. If Cruz keeps on winning, eventually people will have to take notice.

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