Dominick Cruz: TJ Dillashaw Is Hurting The Bantamweight Division

Unfortunately, Dominick Cruz’s return to the UFC’s Octagon will be delayed yet again.

After sustaining yet another injury, “The Dominator” will be out for at least a year before being able to get back into the Octagon. He was initially set to face John Lineker at UFC 233. Now, he’ll have to watch the division from the sidelines until he’s physically read to return. In the meantime, he’ll still talk trash about longtime rival and current 135-pound champion TJ Dillashaw.

Speaking on “Ariel Helwani‘s MMA Show” yesterday (Mon. December 17, 2018) Cruz ripped into Dillashaw’s decision to cut down to challenge for the flyweight title (via MMA News):

“I never missed Faber so much, and I never thought I’d say that,” Cruz said. “But he is a real champion. And you think about who we’ve got there now, T.J. Dillashaw… runs for the fences. I mean, he’s got (Marlon) Moraes begging, knocking at the door.

“He’s got (Raphael) Assuncão banging at the door with these wins. He’s got myself, who was not begging, but was more than ready and the fans were more ready than me or anybody else to see that fight. And what did he do? He ran for the fences. He dropped to a division that’s already ending. How does that help anybody but himself? It doesn’t.”

Cruz says Dillashaw is selfish for taking the route he has. He just wants to get another belt. That’s simply no good for the bantamweight division, however:

“And it doesn’t build the division. It hurts the division. So what are you really doing this for? You’re doing this to try to get another belt for yourself. And I get it. Facing an Olympic gold medalist in Henry Cejudo is not some easy task. I’m not saying that by any means. But what does it do for the division? Like, what are you really doing?”

Dillashaw will challenge Henry Cejudo in the main event of ESPN+ 1 on January 19th in Brooklyn, New York. Should he do so successfully, he’ll become one of few men to have won titles in different weight class, and the third-ever to hold two titles simultaneously.