MONTREAL, QC - MARCH 16: T.J. Dillashaw reacts to his win over Issei Tamura in their bantamweight bout during the UFC 158 event at Bell Centre on March 16, 2013 in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. (Photo by Jonathan Ferrey/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
T.J. Dillashaw Makes His Prediction for UFC 249 Co-main Event
Former bantamweight champion, T.J. Dillashaw has been asked a lot about the bantamweight title fight on deck for UFC 249. He lost to both men and of course, would like to face them both again. While he sits out his suspension he fully expects to return to the division he was once champion in so he will be watching both Henry Cejudo and Dominick Cruz closely.
However, when asked who he thinks will come out on top between the two 135 pounders, Dillashaw predicts Cruz to win. The former champion told TMZ, “If I’m a betting man I’d bet on Dominick Cruz. I think that his awkward fighting style is one too tough to deal with.” Cruz went five rounds with Dillashaw back in 2016 and won a split decision and the bantamweight title from him so he certainly speaks from experience.
Dillashaw believes Cruz can “out-point” Cejudo do to the awkward style he uses and pull off a decision win in his return. While he lost to Cejudo as well, Dillashaw still believes, for the sport of mixed martial arts Cruz brings more to the fight. “I don’t think he’s all what he’s cracked up to be,” Dillashaw said, while he complimented Cejudo for his Olympic gold medal, he feels that Cejudo’s style is “easier to train for” compared to Cruz’s style.
Cejudo was able to finish T.J. in the first round at the beginning of 2019 when Dillashaw dropped down in weight to face Cejudo for the flyweight title. That was the last fight in Dillashaw’s career and the one he received the suspension for. Dillashaw acknowledges his fault in making the decisions he did that lead to his suspension and has learned from his mistakes.
“I owe him a big favor because he taught me a big lesson. In this game of MMA not to fight with emotion.”- Dillashaw on Cruz
He says one lesson he took from the fight with Cruz was not to be emotionally invested. Dillashaw said, “I owe him a big favor because he taught me a big lesson. In this game of MMA not to fight with emotion.”
