Former Ultimate Fighting Championship bantamweight titlist TJ Dillashaw is eyeing a boxing fight against the legendary Floyd Mayweather Jr.
Dillashaw was last seen fighting Henry Cejudo in Brooklyn last January. He moved down to flyweight division in an attempt to become the next UFC two-weight champion.
Unfortunately, he could not handle Cejudo’s firepower as he was finished just 32 seconds into the opening round.
Facing the biggest controversy of his career, Dillashaw was flagged for a doping violation, stemming from his fight against ‘Triple C.’
As the aftermath of the PED-used issue, the 33-year old fighter voluntarily relinquished his bantamweight belt.
The United States Anti-Doping Agency also slapped him with a two-year suspension.
This means he will not return until January 18, 2021.
The controversial fighter recently appeared on Ariel Helwani’s MMA show and discussed his plans for his future return.
No Excuse
Not denying his mistake, Dillashaw recalled the situation that led him to using the banned substance weeks before the flyweight title fight.
He also revealed none from his team was aware of his move.
“No excuses. I made the mistake of wanting to do something that hadn’t been done. I sold my soul to the devil and now I got to build myself back up and deal with it,” he said, (transcript from Bloody Elbow).
“I was getting down to that bare minimum weight where everything was affecting me.”
“I didn’t want to wake up and train in the morning. I had to lose a bunch more weight and I didn’t want to go to the gym, I didn’t want to run and didn’t want to do what I had to do.”
“I got drug tested and I decided I would be able to be clear until the fight, then I fucked up and made that decision.”
Crossover Fight
Once he returns to action, ‘Killashaw’ wants to fight for a UFC title before taking on the undefeated Mayweather in the squared circle.
The former UFC champ has trained with Vasyl Lomachenko in the past and is confident he would fare well against the 50-0 boxer, who recently announced he will come out of retirement again.
“Mayweather wants a UFC star thats good at striking.”
“I’ve got a whole year to reinvent myself to become a boxer. I’ve got the who’s-who in the boxing world.”
“I can train with the Lomachenkos, Terence Crawfords – he ain’t going to be able to wear me out and finish me because of my cardio.”
“I think that’s a very intriguing fight. I’d love to get that Mayweather fight, not even for the money – just for the fact of proving us UFC fighters (have) got what it takes to get in that ring.”
“I go and train out at Joel Diaz’s in Indio, (Calif.) I’m going to train with the Lomachenkos.”
“I’ve seen Terence Crawford’s camp. I think that would be a super intriguing thing to get involved in, and I’ve got the time to do it.”
(Featured Image Source: Instagram/ TJ Dillashaw and Floyd Mayweather)