Another former champion is now officially tied to UFC 200, as T.J. Dillashaw takes on Raphael Assuncao.
Officials made the previously-reported bantamweight bout official Tuesday night.
Dillashaw (12-3) will get the chance to avenge a previous def…
Another former champion is now officially tied to UFC 200, as T.J. Dillashaw takes on Raphael Assuncao.
Officials made the previously-reported bantamweight bout official Tuesday night.
Dillashaw (12-3) will get the chance to avenge a previous defeat, as he lost to Assuncao via split decision. Despite that, the former champion earned a shot at Renan Barao thanks to an injury to Assuncao, winning the title and defending it twice.
This past January, Dillashaw lost to Dominick Cruz via split decision, dropping the belt in the process.
Assuncao (23-4) is on a seven-fight win streak, but injuries have kept him sidelined since a 2014 win over Bryan Caraway.
UFC 200 takes place July 9 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw has proven that he will make changes to his game when and where he needs to do so. He left California and Team Alpha Male in late 2015, which is owned by fellow UFC fighter Urijah Faber, for a more lucrative contract to train at Team Elevation in Colorado.
Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw has proven that he will make changes to his game when and where he needs to do so.
He left California and Team Alpha Male in late 2015, which is owned by fellow UFC fighter Urijah Faber, for a more lucrative contract to train at Team Elevation in Colorado. Team Alpha Male’s striking coach Duane Ludwig also left the team to move to Colorado to coach Dillashaw.
Those changes were made due to the gym costs that Dillashaw was dealing with. However, those changes were not enough when Dillashaw fought and ultimately lost to Dominick Cruz at UFC Fight Night 81.
Dillashaw continues to make changes as he was recently at Tristar Gym in Canada and was training with former UFC welterweight champion and mega star Georges St-Pierre. “GSP” posted this photo on Twitter:
— Georges St-Pierre (@GeorgesStPierre) May 9, 2016
Regarding when Dillashaw will fight again, a rematch with Raphael Assunção, who beat Dillashaw by split decision in 2013, is in the works to take place at UFC 200 on July 9, 2016. The UFC has yet to make the bout official.
According to UFC Tonight, a pivotal bantamweight fight could land on a blockbuster event this summer. Analyst Megan Olivi reported that a rematch between former champion T.J Dillashaw and No. 5-ranked Raphael Assuncao is very ‘possible’ for July 9’s UFC 200 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada. Dillashaw has been out of action
According to UFC Tonight, a pivotal bantamweight fight could land on a blockbuster event this summer.
Analyst Megan Olivi reported that a rematch between former champion T.J Dillashaw and No. 5-ranked Raphael Assuncao is very ‘possible’ for July 9’s UFC 200 from the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Dillashaw has been out of action since surrendering his title in a somewhat questionable decision to Dominick Cruz last January.
Prior to his bout with Cruz, Dillashaw had won four straight bouts after losing to Assuncao back in October 2013. That win streak included a historic title winning performance over former divisional ruler Renan Barao, as well as title defenses over Joe Soto and Barao.
Assuncao, on the other hand, has been considered a bantamweight title threat for a few years now although he just can’t seem to stay healthy. Despite riding an impressive seven-fight win streak, the Brazilian hasn’t competed since October 2014.
Over the course of his streak, Assuncao has beaten the likes of Johnny Eduardo, Dillashaw, and Bryan Caraway.
The 135-pound strap is set to be defended at June 4’s UFC 199 when Cruz meets Urijah Faber in a trilogy matchup, meaning that Dillashaw vs. Assuncao could very well decide the next challenger to the division’s throne.
UFC on FOX 19 has concluded and the card greatly exceeded expectations. Seven of the eleven scheduled bouts where finished while the remaining four produced spectacular decision wins. While the fantastic card did provided MMA fans with entertaining fights, we also learned a few things about the near future of some of the fighters from the event.
UFC on FOX 19 has concluded and the card greatly exceeded expectations. Seven of the eleven scheduled bouts where finished while the remaining four produced spectacular decision wins.
While the fantastic card did provided MMA fans with entertaining fights, we also learned a few things about the near future of some of the fighters from the event. Here are 5 things we learned from UFC on FOX 19.
According to UFC Bantamweight contender Raphael Assuncao, he is ready and willing to make his Octagon return whenever the UFC calls him. He also claims he actually had a date for a return match against T.J. Dillashaw, a fight he thought was set until D…
According to UFC Bantamweight contender Raphael Assuncao, he is ready and willing to make his Octagon return whenever the UFC calls him. He also claims he actually had a date for a return match against T.J. Dillashaw, a fight he thought was set until Dillashaw pulled out.
“I’m 100% right now, ready to return to action,” Assuncao said to BloodyElbow.com. “We’re just waiting on the UFC now. T.J. Dillashaw and myself, we were offered a main event fight which was going to be the May 29 card. It looks like he was hurt then, so that fight didn’t happen. But that was the original plan for my return, May 29, T.J. vs. myself. He wasn’t ready. Somebody else took the spot.”
Assuncao continued, pointing out that Dillashaw claimed he was ready in case Urijah Faber or Dominick Cruz pulled out of the upcoming title fight at UFC 199, but somehow isn’t ready to fight him in their proposed rematch.
“The funny thing is that, [Dillashaw] said in an interview that he was ready to step in if either Urijah or [Dominick Cruz] was hurt, he was ready to step up a week later, but for our main event fight, he wasn’t ready. So try to figure that out,” said Assuncao. “As far as the ankle, I’m ready to get back in action. It’s been a long time. A lot of emotions right now. I’m a little anxious right now to get back to action. I’m ready to put my name back in line.”
Assuncao finished the story, explaining why he is still waiting to find out when and where he will be making his Octagon return.
“I can’t sit and wait for anybody anymore,” he said. “That’s something that me and my good agent, we’re gonna discuss. I can’t sit and wait for people and hope. After T.J. pulled out of main event fight, I thought they would replace him with another fight. So I was expecting a replacement. But that didn’t happen.”
“A whole new main event was placed, and the card was done a couple days after. So I was kind of left there by myself, but hopefully we’ll get a fight soon. I’m still hoping for Dillashaw, which is a fight that makes sense if he wants the next shot. I think it’s my shot next anyways. I’ve been saying that for two years. By position and ranking, fight win streak, I’ve been the guy for two years now. I know things happen, stuff happens, stuff changes, but I think I’m still the guy.”
Dominick Cruz defends the UFC Bantamweight Title against Urijah Faber in a trilogy bout in the co-main event of UFC 199. Headlined by Luke Rockhold vs. Chris Weidman in an immediate rematch for the UFC Middleweight Title, UFC 199 takes place on Saturday, June 4, 2016 at The Forum in Los Angeles, California.
Gee whiz, what’s a guy gotta to do to win a belt around here? Well, we’re here to try and paint both sides of the picture on this polarizing, yet very important debate. Anyone who’s familiar with the UFC has not only heard, but has personally experienced this question before – what exactly do you have
Gee whiz, what’s a guy gotta to do to win a belt around here? Well, we’re here to try and paint both sides of the picture on this polarizing, yet very important debate.
Anyone who’s familiar with the UFC has not only heard, but has personally experienced this question before – what exactly do you have to do to win a title fight in the judges eyes if you’re the challenger? We’ve seen it go both ways before, such as Robbie Lawler’s close win over Carlos Condit earlier this year, or, of course, Jon Jones’ incredibly controversial split decision win over Alexander Gustafsson at UFC 165. Conversely, we’ve obviously seen the other side of the coin with Dominick Cruz vs TJ Dillashaw earlier this year in January.
In the former examples, the champ edges out a razor-thin decision, just barely squeaking out the win and retains his belt. In the latter, the challenger does just enough to best the champ and earn the nod from the judges.
But enough chatter, let’s break this debate down and analyze both sides of this long-standing unwritten rule that the challenger must decisively beat the champ in order to be the champ.
