TJ Dillashaw says Garbrandt can’t make decisions without Faber: ‘Urijah is Cody’s daddy’

The former UFC bantamweight champ is firing a few shots at his TUF coaching opponent, current title hold Cody Garbrandt.

One of MMA’s deepest feuds got started back in 2013 when Duane Ludwig decided to hang up his gloves and take over head coaching duties for Team Alpha Male (TAM). A year later and the California gym had its first ever UFC champion. And a few months after that both Ludwig and his champ were gone.

For a while, all the bad blood focused around Ludwig and his split with TAM. But coaches don’t make for great extended rivalries in combat sports. After all, they aren’t the ones who are actually going to fight it out. Over time, that focus has shifted from sensei to student, from Ludwig to Dillashaw. And it’s a battle that the former UFC bantamweight champion seems more than happy to keep going.

Dillashaw is currently set to face newly minted UFC title holder (and Team Alpha Male product) Cody Garbrandt, following their stint as opposing coaches on the 25th season of the Ultimate Fighter. And now that filming is over, in a recent interview on Damon Martin’s Fight Society podcast, Dillashaw took aim at “No Love,” and at the culture of surrounding his former camp and it’s central figure, Urijah Faber (transcript via Fox Sports).

“Urijah is Cody’s daddy. Cody can’t make any decisions without Urijah,” Dillashaw said on the latest Fight Society podcast. “Urijah’s involved with everything. That’s why Urijah was mad when I left. He likes to be in control. He wants to be the top dog. I hardly even know Cody. It’s kind of comical that Cody wanted to get mad about this whole thing cause I hardly even know the guy. He was on his way in when I was on my way out.

“He was on the team when everyone was making fun of him for who he was. Now everyone’s got his back cause he’s doing great. He’s doing good for the team and getting a good name out there. But really the beef with Cody is just comical because it shouldn’t concern him at all. Just because it involves Urijah, he wants to get all riled up and puff out his feathers and act like a tough guy. I expected this from Cody. He’s a hot head and just for him to not really be able to express himself mentally but just get all worked up.”

While TUF 25 won’t air until mid-April, Dillashaw’s time on the show is already done and dusted. And if his comments above don’t make it clear, having to spend a lot more time around Garbrandt didn’t do much to change his opinion of the man.

“It’s not so much learn but just reinstated what I’ve known about the guy that he’s a complete [expletive] idiot,” Dillashaw said. “He’s not very smart and he’s hot headed. That’s it. There’s not much more behind that other than getting your haircut, making sure your eyebrows are lined up and being a hot head.

“That’s all he’s really got.”

The Ultimate Fighter Redemption Finale is scheduled for July 7th in Las Vegas, Nevada as part of the UFC’s annual International Fight Week. It’s unclear at the moment if the event will also feature the title fight between Garbrandt and Dillashaw, or if the bout will get scheduled for another card.

The former UFC bantamweight champ is firing a few shots at his TUF coaching opponent, current title hold Cody Garbrandt.

One of MMA’s deepest feuds got started back in 2013 when Duane Ludwig decided to hang up his gloves and take over head coaching duties for Team Alpha Male (TAM). A year later and the California gym had its first ever UFC champion. And a few months after that both Ludwig and his champ were gone.

For a while, all the bad blood focused around Ludwig and his split with TAM. But coaches don’t make for great extended rivalries in combat sports. After all, they aren’t the ones who are actually going to fight it out. Over time, that focus has shifted from sensei to student, from Ludwig to Dillashaw. And it’s a battle that the former UFC bantamweight champion seems more than happy to keep going.

Dillashaw is currently set to face newly minted UFC title holder (and Team Alpha Male product) Cody Garbrandt, following their stint as opposing coaches on the 25th season of the Ultimate Fighter. And now that filming is over, in a recent interview on Damon Martin’s Fight Society podcast, Dillashaw took aim at “No Love,” and at the culture of surrounding his former camp and it’s central figure, Urijah Faber (transcript via Fox Sports).

“Urijah is Cody’s daddy. Cody can’t make any decisions without Urijah,” Dillashaw said on the latest Fight Society podcast. “Urijah’s involved with everything. That’s why Urijah was mad when I left. He likes to be in control. He wants to be the top dog. I hardly even know Cody. It’s kind of comical that Cody wanted to get mad about this whole thing cause I hardly even know the guy. He was on his way in when I was on my way out.

“He was on the team when everyone was making fun of him for who he was. Now everyone’s got his back cause he’s doing great. He’s doing good for the team and getting a good name out there. But really the beef with Cody is just comical because it shouldn’t concern him at all. Just because it involves Urijah, he wants to get all riled up and puff out his feathers and act like a tough guy. I expected this from Cody. He’s a hot head and just for him to not really be able to express himself mentally but just get all worked up.”

While TUF 25 won’t air until mid-April, Dillashaw’s time on the show is already done and dusted. And if his comments above don’t make it clear, having to spend a lot more time around Garbrandt didn’t do much to change his opinion of the man.

“It’s not so much learn but just reinstated what I’ve known about the guy that he’s a complete [expletive] idiot,” Dillashaw said. “He’s not very smart and he’s hot headed. That’s it. There’s not much more behind that other than getting your haircut, making sure your eyebrows are lined up and being a hot head.

“That’s all he’s really got.”

The Ultimate Fighter Redemption Finale is scheduled for July 7th in Las Vegas, Nevada as part of the UFC’s annual International Fight Week. It’s unclear at the moment if the event will also feature the title fight between Garbrandt and Dillashaw, or if the bout will get scheduled for another card.