Nothing to spin--actually I'd saw that it takes spin to call this ducking.
The Champ and Flyweight GOAT didn't want to sign up to fight a guy who had never fought in the weight class.
A guy who is asking for the organization he fights for to show him the respect he has absolutely earned didn't want to help Dana and the UFC turn him into a sideshow.
The only way I can see any merit to the ducking accusation is that he wanted to secure the all-time UFC title defence record before taking a big a risk by fighting a guy from a higher weight class.
Now that he's set the record, if the UFC wants to give him superfight money to make that superfight with TJ I'd be willing to bet he'd do it. The timing and reasoning before just didn't make sense from his perspective.
I mean, would anyone have called it ducking if Anderson Silva had refused to fight the 2nd or 3rd ranked LHW when he was on his epic title defense run, for his title? No way. The only reason DJ is being accused of ducking is because people don't respect him or his achievements the way they did Silva or GSP. I didn't see anyone accusing Aldo of ducking because he didn't fight the top lightweights. I don't remember anyone telling Cruz he had to fight Aldo or else they'd can the bantamweight division.
IMO this was a situation created by the Dana and the UFC hoping to cash in and when MM wouldn't comply they used it as a way to drag his name through the mud.