Dillashaw says Aljamain Sterling was ‘gifted the belt’; Garbrandt trilogy ‘not worth my effort’

Former UFC champion T.J. Dillashaw took aim at both Aljamain Sterling and Cody Garbrandt during his recent appearance on the MMA Hour. Dillashaw went…

By: Milan Ordoñez | 7 months ago
Dillashaw says Aljamain Sterling was ‘gifted the belt’; Garbrandt trilogy ‘not worth my effort’
Bloody Elbow 2.0 | Anton Tabuena

Former UFC champion T.J. Dillashaw took aim at both Aljamain Sterling and Cody Garbrandt during his recent appearance on the MMA Hour. Dillashaw went on to discredit “Funkmaster’s” title win and refuses to name him the division’s best champion just yet.

“I feel like he was gifted the belt to begin with, the way he handled it, and then got squeaked by with a win (at UFC 273). “Look man, he’s a great athlete, he’s on a great win streak, he’s gotten to the top, but I don’t think he’s the best champion we’ve got out there.

“I don’t think he’s the best in the division, especially in the division we have, and that was an opportunity I wasn’t going to let slip through my fingers, even though it did. But yes, my opinion does not changed.”

Garbrandt recently issued a challenge to his ex-teammate, calling for a third fight where he lost the first two. Dillashaw, however, shut it down.

“That makes zero sense to me at all. How’s that guy even still in the UFC? He’s lost five of his last six fights. I’m fighting for world titles. It’s a reach. He’ll probably have two losses before I even come back. It won’t even be worth my effort.”

Dillashaw is set to have surgery on his injured shoulder, his third since 2019. And as he told ESPN in a recent interview, he expects to be out of commission for at least nine months.

Share this story

About the author
Milan Ordoñez
Milan Ordoñez

Milan Ordoñez has been covering combat sports since 2012 and has been part of the Bloody Elbow staff since 2016. He’s also competed in amateur mixed martial arts and submission grappling tournaments.

More from the author

Related Stories