TJ Dillashaw will have his chance to reclaim the UFC bantamweight title when he takes on the reigning champion, Aljamain Sterling, at UFC 280. Although Sterling delivered a dominant performance to defend his belt against Petr Yan at UFC 273, TJ Dillashaw doesn’t consider the champion to be a truly “dangerous fight”, as he discussed on The MMA Hour.
To TJ Dillashaw, Aljamain Sterling is “more of an athlete” than a fighter. “He won the fight. The first one was kind of a s***** way to win the belt, and the way he kind of handled it made himself really hated. But still, I don’t feel like he gained that much more respect for the fact that he’s not a dangerous fighter.
Dillashaw: Sterling is “Not a Dangerous Fighter”
He’s not someone you have to go out there and worry about getting finished or put to sleep. I’ve always known he’s great. He’s got some great skills in what he does. But to me, if I look at him, he’s not a fighter. He’s more of an athlete, which our sport is professional athletes, but we’re all fighters and want to go out there and get that finish.”
Of course, Dillashaw will have the chance to prove himself against Sterling when the pair face off at the co-main event at UFC 280. He has a game plan in mind for the fight, particularly after seeing Sterling take out Petr Yan.
“I think they both have their difficulties, just different aspects. When you fight someone like Yan, you’ve got to go out there and be ready for someone to get put to sleep. He’s kind of like that gangster, in your face, ready to go.
When you’re fighting Aljo, you’ve got to worry about him not putting the fight where he wants it and controlling it and making it a snoozefest. So it’s a little bit different, but I think I match up really well with Aljo, to be honest.
A win on the night could even set up a rematch between Dillashaw and Henry Cejudo, who handed Dillashaw a fateful loss when he attempted to move to the flyweight division.
“I feel like the chips are all lining up perfectly, to be honest. Get the belt back, Cejudo’s coming out of retirement — which I knew was all bulls*** anyways. Come on, I knew from the beginning it wasn’t a real retirement, he was trying to get paid more, but it kind of backfired on him, and now he’s coming back, so kind of perfect timing.”
Which way do you see Sterling vs Dillashaw going? Let us know in the comments.
