Dominick Cruz shoots down call out from Raphael Assuncao: ‘I’m fighting for the UFC title when I come back’

No. 4-ranked bantamweight title contender, Raphael Assuncao, got back to his winning ways by turning away Aljamain Sterling at the UFC on FOX 23 mixed martial arts (MMA) event last Saturday night (Jan. 28, 2017) inside Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado.

More on that victory here.

Following his return to the win column, the 24-5 Assuncao — 8-1 dating back to 2011 — called for an immediate showdown against former 135-pound titleholder Dominick Cruz (22-2), who coughed up his crown to Cody Garbrandt at UFC 207 last month in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Thanks, but no thanks.

“It’s not a question of if I’ll fight him,” Cruz said after the event (via MMA Junkie). “I fight the best in the world. I’m ready to fight for the belt. That’s not Assuncao, and I’m not the guy for him. I’m fighting for the title when I come back, and that’s the end of it.”

That might take awhile.

That’s because Garbrandt (11-0) will enter the next season of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) to coach against former champion TJ Dillashaw (details), who continues to get “No Love” from his former Team Alpha Male stablemate.

So where does that leave Assuncao? Out in the cold.

For now.