TJ Dillashaw is calling his shot.
After TJ Dillashaw Knocked out UFC Bantamweight Champion Cody Garbrant and reclaimed the title at UFC 217, he immediately shot down the possibility of a rematch.
“I just finished him in the second round. He doesn’t deserve a rematch,” Dillashaw said Saturday at the UFC 217 post-fight press conference. “He’s very new in this sport, he needs to work his way back up. I should’ve gotten a rematch after that (Dominick) Cruz fight (in Jan. 2016), a very close split decision that I thought I won, and I did not get it. It took me a year-and-a-half — well actually, almost two years — to get it. So yeah, I think he’s going to definitely (need to) build himself back up.”
Instead the newly crowned champion is clearly angling for Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson, the UFC Flyweight champion. In his post -fight interview he called Johnson’s 11 strait title defense record “fake” because a fight with TJ was avoided.
UFC President Dana White seems to think the superfight will happen.
“He’s been crying for a long time for a big fight,” White said of Johnson at the UFC 217 press conference. “He’s got his big fight now. You know I’m down for it because I was down for it before, but now it’s even better. They both have belts, so, yeah.”
Johnson is now getting pay-per-view points under his new contract, and thus, White believes the Flyweight king should take a vested interest in taking the biggest box-office bout.
“He’s a partner in the pay-per-view,” White said. “Let’s see what your PPV does, you’re a partner, let’s see what you make. Listen, you can’t be in a position where you’re like “I want $2 million, f*ck you, I don’t care what you make. I don’t care how much this thing sells, I just want $2 million.”
And Dillashaw seems undaunted by the task of making the 125-lb Flyweight limit:
“The reason why I look so lean at 135 pounds is the way I work,” he said. “I put muscle on, I’m not a big 135er. A walk around at 150, you know? But I stack on, I stay lean, I keep my diet, I’ve kept on my diet since The Ultimate Fighter.”
Although the UFC arguably watched its biggest potential star in Cody Grabrant lose the belt on Saturday, the prospect of this super-fight is attractive for everyone, except apparently the Flyweight champion. But with his record now in the books, perhaps Johnson will be more willing to risk his belt for the biggest payday of his career.
Should Demetrious Johnson accept TJ Dillashaw’s challenge?
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