UFC 222 lost its main event as Max Holloway, a featherweight champion injured his leg and pulled out of his title defense bout against former lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. The event is set to take place on March 3 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The UFC reached out to TJ Dillashaw, a bantamweight champion to see if he was interested in defending his title against, Cody Garbrandt whom he defeated at UFC 217 back in November. Dillashaw earned the belt with a second-round knockout victory.
The champion, in his second run as bantamweight champion, turned down the rematch. Dillashaw also said Garbrandt has not earned an immediate rematch.
With that amount of money and prestige coming up right around the corner, it’s no surprise that TJ Dillashaw isn’t very interested in save a thin UFC card.
Cody Garbrandt, a former champ is willing to offer some part of his purse to T.J. Dillashaw, if he steps in the Octagon and defends the title next month while speaking to Ariel Helwani on recent episode of ‘The MMA Hour.’
“I’ll give him a cut of my purse if he wants it, if the UFC doesn’t want to compensate him,” Garbrandt said. “It’s not about money for me, it’s about principle. It’s about getting my title back. I’m healthy. OK, we both haven’t been training — OK, cool. Four weeks, we’re fighters at the end of the day. We’re gonna fight. If he wants a cut of my purse, I’ll give [it to] him. If it’s money for him, OK.”
Cody Garbrandt says he is willing to fight even though his wife is due with their baby any day. In fact, Dillashaw said he hasn’t been training as he just had a baby. Garbrandt said he hasn’t been training, either, but he is ready to jump into this opportunity.
“When the UFC calls and gives you can opportunity like that, you jump all over it,” Garbrandt said. “I don’t know, man. He wants to make a lot of excuses and bring fatherhood into it. It’s the same thing. I understand, whatever. But you’re gonna sit there and tell me you can’t train because you’ve got a kid?”
“TJ already started planting it in the media,” Garbrandt said. “They’re media whores, him and Duane. They want to go there and talk. I never saw a coach who goes in the media and talks and does interviews more than Duane. It’s crazy to me. They know what it is. That’s why they say I’m gonna have a long road back. They don’t want that fight back with me and it is what it is.
“It’s inevitable. It’s destiny for me to be a world champion again. That’s my goals and that’s what I’m training for.”
Cody Garbrandt is in do or die situation and ready to make this fight happen at any cost.
“If TJ grows a pair in these next few days, man, awesome,” Garbrandt said. “Then I’ll have some respect for him. Because I know if it was Dominick Cruz, Dominick Cruz would immediately answer the call and been like, ‘Let’s do it.’ He fought TJ on four weeks notice and actually beat him.”
“TJ, if you’re listening; Duane, I know you’re listening — you’re a weirdo,” Garbrandt said. “Let’s make this fight. Let’s make this fight, let’s do this. Let’s save the card. Let’s get compensated. If you want some of my purse, I’ll give it to you. I don’t give a f*ck about money. I want the title back and that’s it.”
Do you think Cody Garbrandt deserves a rematch? How many of you want to see this rematch to happen?
