Cruz on title: 'The belt is just a piece of metal; I've still got it in my heart'

Dominick Cruz is still the UFC bantamweight champion ... at least, he is in his heart.

The former 135-pound kingpin has seen his once dominant career destroyed by injuries, and hasn't stepped foot in the Octagon since defeating Demetrious Johnson at UFC Live 6 in October 2011.

To put the last three years of Cruz's career in perspective: since their encounter in 2011, Johnson dropped down a weight class, won the flyweight title and fought seven times. 

Despite this extended period on the shelf, and the continued evolution of the bantamweight division, Cruz still counts himself as one of the sport's elite.

"The belt is just a piece of metal. I've still got it in my heart," Cruz told MMAFighting.com's Ariel Helwani (via Bloodyelbow). "I still consider myself one of the best on the planet. You have to believe that about yourself."

Three years is a long time to sit on the sidelines as a sport evolves. Especially in a combat sport where one is specifically looking to add fist-to-face in order to knock a foe unconscious. The long layoff doesn't scare Cruz, though, as he thinks his injuries have forced him to shore-up other aspects of his game.

"I definitely think I've made some vast improvements because these injuries have forced me to focus on other aspects because I couldn't hop around so much," Cruz said. "I've really worked on my grappling, I've worked on these weird, unconventional things that you can't really work on because you wouldn't have seen it if you were 100-percent healthy."

We'll see if Cruz can overcome the ring rust and knock off the ultra-game Takeya Mizugaki at UFC 178 on Saturday night.