TJ Dillashaw explains why he decided to retire from MMA
TJ Dillashaw has opened up on why he decided to hang up his gloves.
In his UFC 280 TKO loss to Aljamain Sterling for the bantamweight title, Dillashaw dislocated his shoulder multiple times and needed surgery to fix it. With him being 36 and likely out for another year, he decided to retire after his son told him he didn’t want him fighting anymore because he couldn’t play with him like usual.
“I went and had a shoulder surgery four weeks ago, and the doctor just kind of like, had a raw conversation we me,” Dillashaw told Brendan Schaub on “Food Truck Diaries” (via MMAJunkie). “He was like, ‘Hey, man. It’s time to make a decision. This is your third shoulder surgery in the last three years.’ … It just got me thinking about life and my son, and being able to be active with him, and swing a golf club with him – just live life outside of fighting, you know?”
After the conversation with his son, TJ Dillashaw went to his doctor and when his doctor told him what the recovery would be, he informed the UFC of his retirement.
“I went and saw the doctor, and with my son and everything going on, I was just like, ‘F*ck this, I’m done,’” Dillashaw said. “I wrote a letter to Hunter and said, ‘Hey man, thank you for what you’ve done for the sport, and the platform you’ve given me and the name I’ve been able to build because of it. But it’s just too much, I’m out right now.’”
TJ Dillashaw retires with a pro record of 17-5 and is a two-time bantamweight champion. Dana White has also said he is a future Hall of Famer as in his career, he has beaten the likes of Cody Garbrandt, John Lineker, Cory Sandhagen, and Raphael Assuncao. He’s also considered to be one of the best bantamweights of all time.
