Too soon?
It sounds like former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw is having second thoughts about his recent decision to retire from MMA, despite the fact that his chronically wonky shoulder left him unable to hang with the upper echelon of the division.
Dillashaw is coming off a second-round technical knockout loss to Aljamain Sterling.
“This is retirement,” Dillashaw told his Instagram followers while putting golf balls in his backyard. “But in all honesty I’m pretty pissed that I didn’t get the chance to choose to retire. I feel that I’m too good to hang ’em up. Haven’t told many people but I have to go under the knife again for surgery because my first surgery didn’t take. Being told that my shoulder will never be good enough to compete again is hard to hear. I have been delaying my surgery trying to find a better solution.”
His most recent surgery left the 37 year-old Dillashaw sidelined for at least another year.
There was a time in the not-too-distant past when the former “Ultimate Fighter” finalist was on top of the world, capturing the 135-pound title by stopping bitter rival Cody Garbrandt. Then came his failed “champ champ” experiment, followed by a positive drug test.
Dillashaw missed two years of his fighting prime on suspension.
Upon return, the “Clean Juice” mogul put together a 1-1 record, squeaking by Cory Sandhagen with a split decision before falling to Sterling in Abu Dhabi. No word yet on whether he’s planning a legitimate UFC comeback or simply mourning his career.
Time will tell.