Tag: TJ Dillashaw

Can Big Money Buy the Next Superstar? Inside UFC’s $6 Million Gamble on Cody Garbrandt

Can Big Money Buy the Next Superstar? Inside UFC's $6 Million Gamble on Cody GarbrandtAccording to T.J. Dillashaw, the UFC put big money into trying to make Cody Garbrandt the next Conor McGregor…

Can Big Money Buy the Next Superstar? Inside UFC's $6 Million Gamble on Cody Garbrandt

According to T.J. Dillashaw, the UFC put big money into trying to make Cody Garbrandt the next Conor McGregor

While Garbrandt is a former bantamweight world champion — defeating Dominick Cruz to claim the title in 2016 — ‘No Love’ has never been able to replicate the success he had that night.

Cody Garbrandt

Garbrandt promptly lost the title to Dillashaw in his first defense and proceeded to lose five of his next six fights after stunning Cruz.

Garbrandt showed some flashes of his old self, earning back-to-back wins against Trevin Giles and Brian Kelleher, but he found his way back into the loss column at UFC 300 against former flyweight king Deiveson Figueiredo.

Cody Garbrandt

The UFC threw down Big Money on Cody Garbrandt

Recently, Dillashaw — a two-time opponent of Garbrandt — claimed that the UFC had gone all-in on promoting ‘No Love,’ believing he could become a star as big as ‘Mystic Mac.’

“[Garbrandt] had an amazing fight against Cruz…The UFC’s like, ‘Hey, this is our next big horse,” Dillashaw said on The Casuals MMA podcast. “Let’s put some money into him’. So they marketed the sh*t out of him, put him in a bunch of commercials, got some celebrities behind him. From what I was told, they put like $6 million into marketing him before our fight…So he went to massive stardom fast. They wanted him to be the next Conor McGregor” (h/t Sportskeeda).

Garbrandt was scheduled for a return to action on November 9 against Miles Johns, but an injury forced him to bow out of the bout. ‘No Love’ is 9-6 under the UFC banner, 14-6 overall.

Cody Garbrandt

Can Big Money Buy the Next Superstar? Inside UFC’s $6 Million Gamble on Cody Garbrandt

Can Big Money Buy the Next Superstar? Inside UFC's $6 Million Gamble on Cody GarbrandtAccording to T.J. Dillashaw, the UFC put big money into trying to make Cody Garbrandt the next Conor McGregor…

Can Big Money Buy the Next Superstar? Inside UFC's $6 Million Gamble on Cody Garbrandt

According to T.J. Dillashaw, the UFC put big money into trying to make Cody Garbrandt the next Conor McGregor

While Garbrandt is a former bantamweight world champion — defeating Dominick Cruz to claim the title in 2016 — ‘No Love’ has never been able to replicate the success he had that night.

Cody Garbrandt

Garbrandt promptly lost the title to Dillashaw in his first defense and proceeded to lose five of his next six fights after stunning Cruz.

Garbrandt showed some flashes of his old self, earning back-to-back wins against Trevin Giles and Brian Kelleher, but he found his way back into the loss column at UFC 300 against former flyweight king Deiveson Figueiredo.

Cody Garbrandt

The UFC threw down Big Money on Cody Garbrandt

Recently, Dillashaw — a two-time opponent of Garbrandt — claimed that the UFC had gone all-in on promoting ‘No Love,’ believing he could become a star as big as ‘Mystic Mac.’

“[Garbrandt] had an amazing fight against Cruz…The UFC’s like, ‘Hey, this is our next big horse,” Dillashaw said on The Casuals MMA podcast. “Let’s put some money into him’. So they marketed the sh*t out of him, put him in a bunch of commercials, got some celebrities behind him. From what I was told, they put like $6 million into marketing him before our fight…So he went to massive stardom fast. They wanted him to be the next Conor McGregor” (h/t Sportskeeda).

Garbrandt was scheduled for a return to action on November 9 against Miles Johns, but an injury forced him to bow out of the bout. ‘No Love’ is 9-6 under the UFC banner, 14-6 overall.

Cody Garbrandt

TJ Dillashaw ‘Not Mad’ With José Aldo Losing UFC 307 Decision: ‘Lost The Fight Himself’

Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw doesn’t have much sympathy for José Aldo after he came up short in Salt Lake City this past weekend. Aldo returned on the main card of the UFC 307 pay-per-view on Oct. 5, making his second appearance inside the Octagon since bringing his short-lived retirement to an end in […]

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Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw doesn’t have much sympathy for José Aldo after he came up short in Salt Lake City this past weekend.

Aldo returned on the main card of the UFC 307 pay-per-view on Oct. 5, making his second appearance inside the Octagon since bringing his short-lived retirement to an end in Rio de Janeiro earlier this year.

While the Brazilian immediately forged a path back into the rankings at 135 pounds by getting the better of Jonathan Martinez, Mario Bautista was able to spoil his plans for a late-career title shot in Utah.

The 33-year-old fell on the right side of a split decision verdict, a result that proved controversial. Many gave the nod to Aldo after determining that Bautista didn’t do enough with his control against the cage.

UFC CEO Dana White was among those questioning the two judges who leant the way of Bautista. One of the division’s former titleholders, however, saw no issue with the result…

Dillashaw: Aldo ‘Kept Himself’ Against The Cage

During a recent episode of the JAXXON PODCAST, Dillashaw reflected on the events that unfolded at UFC 307, including the main card clash in the weight class he formerly ruled over.

Dillashaw differed from many with his take on Aldo vs. Bautista. He insisted that the ex-featherweight kingpin could have done much more to avoid granting Bautista such a long period of control in round three, which ultimately proved to be the difference.

“It surprises me…there’s techniques like this that (Aldo) doesn’t like — get off the cage,” Dillashaw said. “The loss for him, like with the fight cards, they thought Aldo should’ve won. I don’t know. He kept himself there (against the cage). Like, I’m not too mad. He lost the fight himself.”

It remains to be seen what comes next for Aldo, who was hoping to defend his spot inside the bantamweight top 10 in Salt Lake City before focusing on those above him.

With his UFC 307 loss marking the first bout on a new multi-fight deal with MMA’s leading promotion, Aldo will likely look to rebound and revive his ongoing ambitions inside the Octagon soon enough.

Continue Reading TJ Dillashaw ‘Not Mad’ With José Aldo Losing UFC 307 Decision: ‘Lost The Fight Himself’ at MMA News.

T.J. Dillashaw Shocked by How ‘Weak’ Sean O’Malley Looked Against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306: ‘I Didn’t Expect It’

T.J. Dillashaw Shocked by How 'Weak' Sean O'Malley Looked Against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306: 'I Didn't Expect It'T.J. Dillashaw was impressed with Merab Dvalishvili’s performance at UFC 306. ‘The Machine’ cashed in on his first shot…

T.J. Dillashaw Shocked by How 'Weak' Sean O'Malley Looked Against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 306: 'I Didn't Expect It'

T.J. Dillashaw was impressed with Merab Dvalishvili’s performance at UFC 306.

‘The Machine’ cashed in on his first shot at UFC gold, delivering a dominant five-round performance against ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley to claim the bantamweight division’s top prize.

Merab Dvalishvili

Going into the bout, the odds were fairly close with O’Malley being slightly favored to come out on top. Instead, Dvalishvili shut down the ex-champ’s offense with a barrage of smothering takedown attempts and control time. Most educated fight fans knew that Dvalishvili’s contrasting style could win the day against O’Malley, but not many expected him to be as dominant as he was.

Merab Dvalishvili

That includes Dillashaw who was surprised by how easy Dvalishvili made it all look.

“It’s not that I didn’t expect it,” Dillashaw said on the JAXXON Podcast. “I knew that it was very close on the betting odds and when I had to go and pick this fight, I knew that Merab had a chance to just pressure the f*ck out of him. The guy is the Tasmanian Devil. He never stops and continues to shoot shots.

“I knew it was a possibility, but I thought – especially after watching how O’Malley has composed himself and how well he’s done on his feet using his feints, distance, and angles – I thought he’d be able to keep that distance and control, be hard to take down and spark him. That’s what I thought could happen, as well.

“I didn’t think it was going to be this easy for Merab. Merab made him look weak – very weak” (h/t BJPenn.com).

Merab Dvalishvili Eyes title fight with Umar Nurmagomedov… maybe

What comes next for Merab Dvalishvili remains to be seen, but all signs point toward ‘The Machine’ defending his title against No. 2 ranked contender Umar Nurmagomedov — assuming the Dagestani star doesn’t grow impatient and move onto another opponent in the interim.

Truth be told, Dvalishvili isn’t even all that interested in facing Nurmagomedov considering his lack of top 15 wins, though that’s not entirely Nurmagomedov’s fault. The undefeated fighter has struggled for years to lock in opponents, but a dominant decision victory over Cory Sandhagen appears to have been enough to score him his first title shot.

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Former UFC Champ Says Herb Dean Officiated ‘Like He Had Money On O’Malley’ At UFC 306

Count former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw among those confused by Herb Dean’s actions in this past weekend’s main event. The veteran official was tasked with being the third man inside the Octagon for the Noche UFC (UFC 306) headliner inside the Sphere, where Sean O’Malley put his 135-pound gold on the line against Merab […]

Continue Reading Former UFC Champ Says Herb Dean Officiated ‘Like He Had Money On O’Malley’ At UFC 306 at MMA News.

Count former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw among those confused by Herb Dean’s actions in this past weekend’s main event.

The veteran official was tasked with being the third man inside the Octagon for the Noche UFC (UFC 306) headliner inside the Sphere, where Sean O’Malley put his 135-pound gold on the line against Merab Dvalishvili.

Dean wasn’t short on involvement early on, with a war of words between the challenger and coach Tim Welch in O’Malley’s corner forcing his intervention, shortly followed by a warning to “The Machine” for repeatedly kissing the defending champ’s back while in control of him on the ground.

Later in the fight, the referee featured in a different way as he frequently called for more action while Dvalishvili held a dominant grappling position.

While that was enough to cause debate, Dean’s decision to do the same while the pair were on the feet in the main event’s dying seconds saw him become the subject of heavy criticism from the commentary team and fans online.

Dillashaw Slams Dean For UFC 306 Main Event Refereeing: ‘Shouldn’t Be Involved Like That’

During a recent episode of the JAXXON PODCAST, Dillashaw looked back on the events that unfolded inside the Sphere alongside Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Luke Rockhold, and Jason Parillo.

The former UFC bantamweight champion was firm with his criticism of the third man inside the cage for Saturday’s headliner, suggesting Dean refereed favorably toward the defending champion.

“It’s complete bullsh*t,” Dillashaw said. “You can’t tell two fighters to work when they’re on their feet. I could run circles if I wanted to. You can’t tell me to go and work. … It’s not like I’m stalling against the cage. We’re striking, and you’re telling me to work. Like, I might run into something now ’cause you’re coaching me on how I am supposed to fight. The ref shouldn’t be involved like that.

“I thought it was very weird. It was almost like he had money on O’Malley,” Dillashaw continued. “(It was) like he wanted Merab to keep going so O’Malley could catch him with something. It was weird.”

Dean’s performance in the main event has remained a prominent talking point days on from the show, as has factors away from the fighting action itself such as Welch’s controversial corner tactics.

While many have lauded the UFC for the spectacle it put on inside the Sphere, those likely weren’t the topics that the promotion hoped would come out of the pay-per-view main event.

Continue Reading Former UFC Champ Says Herb Dean Officiated ‘Like He Had Money On O’Malley’ At UFC 306 at MMA News.

TJ Dillashaw Criticises Anthony Smith: ‘He Doesn’t Have That Dog In Him…’

TJ Dillashaw recently escalated his critique of Anthony Smith, backing up all of his previous fault-finding of the former UFC light heavyweight title challenger. Smith might have faced a sobering reality regarding his hopes for a second run towards the title after enduring a challenging unanimous decision loss to short-notice replacement Roman Dolidze at UFC […]

Continue Reading TJ Dillashaw Criticises Anthony Smith: ‘He Doesn’t Have That Dog In Him…’ at MMA News.

TJ Dillashaw recently escalated his critique of Anthony Smith, backing up all of his previous fault-finding of the former UFC light heavyweight title challenger.

Smith might have faced a sobering reality regarding his hopes for a second run towards the title after enduring a challenging unanimous decision loss to short-notice replacement Roman Dolidze at UFC 303 in June.

Interestingly, the former UFC bantamweight champion was highly critical of “Lionheart’s” performance during his appearance on the JAXXON PODCAST with former UFC champions Rampage Jackson and Luke Rockhold last month. Dillashaw mocked Smith’s moniker, bluntly stating that the 36-year-old Texan will never become champion because he lacks the resilience to persevere.

Smith swiftly responded to Dillashaw’s pointed remarks during an episode of the BELIEVE YOU ME Podcast. “Lionheart” didn’t hold back, taking a scathing jab at the 38-year-old Californian’s positive performance-enhancing drug test in 2019, which resulted in a two-year suspension from the UFC.

However, the exchange of verbal jabs didn’t end there. Dillashaw has returned with a fresh barrage of critiques, once again labeling Smith as a quitter…

Dillashaw Thinks Smith Becomes Defensive When Judged

During his recent appearance on the JAXXON PODCAST, Dillashaw sought to defend his previous comments about Smith, arguing that he lacks the attributes of a true championship contender—a reality Smith himself has acknowledged.

“I thought he was going to be a champion. I said no, and then you’re like, why not? It’s like, he gives up,” Dillashaw said. “He doesn’t have that fight, he doesn’t have that dog in him personally, and I think he admitted it himself without even hearing our podcast yet. He did a video after that, kind of like deciding he’s going to continue to fight.”

The bantamweight veteran further noted that while Smith frequently criticizes other fighters, he doesn’t handle criticism directed at himself with the same grace.

“I mean, dude, the guy’s got to sit there and be like, why are you wearing your feelings on your sleeve? I mean, he sits there and talks sht about people on the broadcast all the time. I’m no stranger to it; he said some sh*t about me. It’s like, whatever, dude. That’s just how I feel, and if you don’t like it, if the truth hurts, too f**king bad.”

Smith competed for the light heavyweight title in March 2019 against Jon Jones at UFC 235. In that bout, “Lionheart” decided to continue after being struck by an illegal knee from Jones and ultimately lost by unanimous decision.

Following his defeat to “Bones”, Smith struggled to find his footing, unable to gain any significant momentum in his subsequent outings.

Continue Reading TJ Dillashaw Criticises Anthony Smith: ‘He Doesn’t Have That Dog In Him…’ at MMA News.