UFC news 2017: Cody Garbrandt calls out former teammate T.J. Dillashaw
Let the trash talking begin. Newly crowned Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt still doesn't know who he will be facing next, but that did not stop him from throwing shade at his former Team Alpha Male teammate T.J. Dillashaw.
In a recent episode of "UFC Unfiltered" (via Sherdog), Garbrandt talked about how Dillashaw was never truly a champion because he did not take the belt away from Dominick Cruz. "Cruz was the world champion, never lost his belt, and I'm the one that went out there and ripped it from him," he stated.
Cruz was forced to vacate the belt after a series of injuries put him on the sidelines for a considerable amount of time, and Dillashaw won the belt from Renan Barão in what was considered one of the biggest upsets in UFC history at the time. After that fight, Dillashaw went on to defend the title twice before he lost it to Cruz. Now, he's finally back on track for another title shot after destroying John Lineker at UFC 207.
Garbrandt and Dillashaw may be former teammates, but Garbrandt wouldn't mind fighting him because he thinks the former champion was a cancer to the team.
"I don't mind whooping T.J.'s ass. He was a cancer to our team and having what he tried to do — destroy it — to make that s—t personal too," he stated. "He sold out. He's a sellout. He sold his friends, everybody that got him there. He forgot who got him to where he was at. Saw a little bit of money and f—-ing ran. Ran away," he added.
Those were harsh words, but Dillashaw did cause a lot of trouble when he left the team with Duane Ludwig. But before Garbrandt can get his hands on Dillashaw, they will have to agree to a fight. Right now, his management team and the UFC are still figuring out which fight makes the most sense.