The move comes a little over a year after the UFC officially absorbed the WEC’s talent roster, establishing the UFC Bantamweight (135) and Featherweight (145) divisions in the process. Shortly after, Dana White started talking about the eventual Flyweight class.

BANTAMWEIGHTS BEWARE

Speculated to join the division are current Bantamweights Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, Joseph Benavidez, and The Ultimate Fighter 14′s Bantamweight winner, John Dodson.

The overwhelming focus seems to be on which Bantamweights will make the jump down in weight, but I’m personally more intrigued by the new fighters this will bring into the promotion. And I predict that the promotion’s first star is likely one that is not currently under contract with Zuffa.

Who that may be remains a mystery. But what often gets overlooked is the fact that cutting down a weight class gets exponentially harder the lower you get. When Bantamweights and Featherweights were added last year, a lot of the talk was on which Lightweights (155) would make the cut down to Featherweight, with the speculation being that we would suddenly see a mass exodus. It didn’t quite happen that way, and thus far those that did make the jump – guys like Tyson Griffin and George Roop – have flamed out in their attempts to be the big dogs in the puppy kennel.

But cutting down to 145 pounds is a tough proposition when you’re already cutting weight to make 155, simply because you don’t have the extra expendable mass that bigger fighters have. In many ways, even though there’s a difference of fifteen pounds between Light Heavyweight and Middleweight, it’s easier to make that jump than to make it from 155 to 145. Which is also why the weight classes in MMA are set up the way they are.

Guys like Dodson and Johnson already walk around (and weigh in) below 135 for their fights, so the cut likely won’t be as tough for them. But anybody currently at Bantamweight and Featherweight who thinks they’re just going to make the cut to 125 and find immediate success is going to be in for a rude awakening…particularly in the coming months when the establishment of the division sees an infusion of international talent.

The announcement of Flyweights will make for great fights, but also some intriguing roster shifts. Stay tuned.

I’ve been signing the praises of Cruz to friends and fans going back to his days in the WEC. Boy, do I miss those cards, particularly the laters ones that featured almost exclusively Bantamweight and Featherweight fights. Since MMA is still a young sport, there are still divisions that are lacking for depth (in particular Heavyweight and Middleweight) and still experience growing pains while the sport continues to attract the attention of  higher caliber of athletes from around the globe. Yet in the WEC, there were two lower weight classes that at the time were not even in the UFC where the talent pool was not only exceptional, but nearly every fight was a barn-burner.

Cruz was the star of the WEC in its final days, becoming champion right at the precipice of the announcement of the UFC’s eventual aborption of the promotion. His year and a half long reign has seen him dominate the likes of Scott Jorgensen and former Featherweight champion Urijah Faber in performances that have shown him to be something far beyond the measuring stick for his weight class. Like Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva, Cruz seems to be a generation ahead of every other fighter in his division, yet with a style that is unique and all his own. Anyone that appreciates footwork can only sit in awe as he darts and dances around his opponents. As MMAFighting.com’s Ben Fowlkes once said (in praise of Cruz’s unique style and baffling cardio), “how do you prepare for this weirdo?”

It’s my belief (as you’ll see when I release my rankings later this week) that Dominick Cruz is one of the top five pound-for-pound fighters in the world. It’s a shame that he’s not being showcased on pay-per-view and does not yet have the recognition and respect from casual fans to be a major draw, but the positive of course is that we get to see one of the greatest MMA fighters in the game hone his craft on free television. Lucky us.

“UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson” airs live on Versus this Saturday, October 1st starting at 9:00pm.

In addition to the main event, the rest of the card has the potential to be one of the more entertaining events of 2011. Pat Barry vs. Stefan Struve, Matt Wiman vs. Mac Danzig, and Anthony Johnson vs. Charlie Brenneman rounds out the live televised portion of the event.

You owe it to yourself as a fan to watch this Saturday. Mark my words: you won’t see a better fighter step in the cage the rest of this year.