Raphael Assuncao Wants a Fight With Dominick Cruz

Raphael Assuncao spoke with MMA Fighting for a new interview, calling out Dominick Cruz. Highlights from the interview are below:

On a fight with Dominick Cruz: ”I’ve already called him out in many interviews, but we don’t know what’s next for me yet. The fight to make is me against Cruz. He’s the No. 2 in the ranking and I’m the No. 3. That’s the right fight to make. Marlon (Moraes) and Jimmie (Rivera) are right below me and they are fighting next, so this is the fight to make — but he already ran from the fight, said he’s out indefinitely.”

On Cruz having not fought since UFC 207 in December 2016: ”I think he’s trying some kind of strategy, like waiting for someone to get injured and get a title fight on short notice. I think that’s what he wants. But we have to make this fight to see who’s the next contender.”

On believing he should be ranked above Cruz: ”Even though he’s a former champion, most of the guys he beat when he was champion have already retired.”

On possibly fighting again before he faces Cruz: ”Dominick knows that this is the perfect fight to make, but I want to fight. We’ll try to make it happen and stay active and prepared to fight when the opportunity comes. The more I fight, they are actually helping me [laughs]. It’s feeding me with experience, and when my time comes they can bring anyone.”