TJ Dillashaw made a triumphant, yet somewhat controversial return to the octagon at UFC last Saturday night at UFC Fight Night after serving a 2-year suspension for doping. There was a lot on the line for the former 2x champion. A title shot was looming for the winner of Dillashaw and Corey Sandhagen, plus the world wanted to see if Dillashaw was still elite, or if his career was a product of steroids.
Dillashaw showed the world that he is certainly someone to be taken seriously when he defeated Sandhagen via split decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47).
As expected, Tj Dillashaw made the leap from unranked, to number 3 in the world after his win against Corey Sandhagen.
While some felt Dillashaw didn’t do enough to win, in the eyes of the judges, he did, and their scores are final. With the number 3 now next to his name, Dillashaw will almost certainly get a title shot against whoever is the champion after Aljamain “Funk Master” Sterling and Petr Yan run it back at UFC267 in October on FightIsland.
The timeline works for Dillashaw who needed surgery to repair some minor damage to his knee. He and his doctor are expecting a quick recovery. I’m expecting Dillashaw to get his title fight in early 2022, as long as whoever is the champion after UFC 267 doesn’t sustain any injuries in October.
Christopher James has been in the MMA industry for 15 years, Working as a ring announcer for promotions like the XFC, Island Fights, Combat Night and Fight Nights Global during his career. Chris’ love for the sport and the athletes that partake in it led him to writing and doing face to face interviews with the athletes he admired and respected. Chris isn’t conventional by any stretch of the imagination, he has his own style, and takes pride in not being a “cookie-cutter” member of the media. Unique and sometimes controversial takes are what he brings to the table, forcing folks to think a little differently about the world of MMA. He also has a love for music as he has been a dj for 25 years and his love for music gets brought to the MMA world when he gets his guests to sing on his weekly show Cage Side with Christopher James which can be seen Wednesday nights on FACEBOOK LIVE, and soon via podcast.