TJ Dillashaw vs. Cody Garbrandt II Reportedly Finalized For UFC 227
A blockbuster bantamweight rematch has reportedly been finalized for this summer.
News broke tonight (Wed., April 4, 2018) from ESPN’s Brett Okamoto that the UFC has supposedly booked TJ Dillashaw vs. Cody Garbrandt II for August 4’s UFC 227 from The Staples Center in Los Angeles, California.
The fight is expected to be officially announced in the coming days.
Current champion Dillashaw recently won the title back from Garbrandt in the co-main event of last November’s UFC 217 after the archrivals served as coaches of The Ultimate Fighter (TUF). The Denver, Colorado-based ‘Viper’ won the title by knocking out then-pound-for-pound great Renan Barao at UFC 173, defending it twice before losing it to Dominick Cruz via controversial split decision in January 2016.
‘No Love’ then won the title from Cruz in turn at UFC 207, paving the clear path for a rivalry with pre-installed beef from their days as Team Alpha Male teammates and training partners, where Dillashaw left for Denver alongside former TAM head coach Duane Ludwig. The bad blood resulted in a great back-and-forth bout at UFC 207, with ‘No Love’ rocking Dillashaw in the first round and Dillashaw winning the fight with an earth-shattering punch in the second.
Dillashaw had long been rumored to be headed for a super fight with dominant UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, but that fight is apparently off for now, and the bantamweight division’s most awaited rematch sits in its place.
Was this the right fight to make at 135 pounds?
