TJ Dillashaw wants to run it back with Henry Cejudo: “I’m so much of a better fighter than him”
Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw wants to run it back with Henry Cejudo, saying that “I’m so much of a better fighter than him.”
Dillashaw and Cejudo met in January 2019 in the main event of UFC on ESPN+ 1. At the time, Dillashaw was the UFC’s 135lbs champion and was moving down to 125lbs to take on Cejudo for the belt he just took from Demetrious Johnson. Even though Dillashaw was favored by many analysts heading into the fight with Cejudo, he suffered a vicious TKO loss in the first minute of the fight and lost his chance to become a double champion. To make matters worse, Dillashaw tested positive for PEDs following the bout and he has not stepped into the Octagon in over two years since that night.
With Dillashaw eligible to return to the Octagon now, he has been active on social media and in interviews as of late, particularly when it comes to calling out current UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan. Right now, Dillashaw’s goal is to fight for the belt. But Yan is not the only fighter on his hit list. Speaking to Mike Swick on the “Real Quick with Mike Swick” podcast, Dillashaw said that he is still convinced he is a better fighter than Cejudo is, and he hopes to run it back with him one day.
“I haven’t thought about a hit list exactly right, but yeah, he’s (Henry Cejudo) on it. Just you saying his name it’s like, ‘Oh god,’ you know? ‘The King of Cringe’ did a good job of being cringy. It’s one of those fights that I was so much better going into that fight. Don’t take anything away from him. I think he’s an amazing athlete for winning an Olympic gold medal. I give him more credit for being an Olympic gold medalist than I do winning a UFC championship and that’s something because I’ve wrestled my whole life, that is quite amazing. But I’m so much of a better fighter than him, well-rounded wise,” Dillashaw said (via Ross Markey of LowKickMMA.com).
“The way that his (Cejudo’s) career worked out and the way that he stepped away from it was just like, he got so lucky. So that’s a fight that I want back because I don’t think he’s as good as he thinks he is, so that’s for sure on my hit list. First and foremost, (the) hit list for me, is just getting my belt back. Whatever path I have to take to get there, if it’s fighting all the guys in the top-five first, if it’s going straight to the belt, and then making sure I defend it and make a statement.”
With Dillashaw returning to the Octagon in short order, and with Cejudo potentially making a comeback at some point himself, don’t be surprised if we eventually do see these two meet inside the Octagon again.
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