TJ Dillashaw will undergo knee surgery after suffering ruptured ligament on UFC return following two-year drug ban
FORMER UFC men’s bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw will undergo surgery on his injured knee ‘in the next couple of days’ following his victory over Cory Sandhagen.
The two-time ruler of the 135lb division scored a narrow split-decision victory over the Sandman last Sunday morning in the main event of UFC on ESPN 27.
But the 35-year-old won’t be back in the cage any time soon as he suffered a bucket handle tear of his lateral meniscus and raptured the lateral collateral ligament in his left knee.
Dillashaw revealed his imminent surgery in a post on Instagram, which included a picture of himself on crutches with his son.
The accompanying caption read: “No place like home, this right here brings me all the joy I need. #daddyshome.
“Went in for a MRI today, found out that I suffered a displaced Bucket Handle tear of the Lateral Meniscus and a Lateral Collateral Ligament (LCL) rupture at the end of the first round landing ground and pound while being lazy in a compromised position.
“The good news is that these tears are repairable and will have a very speedy recovery.
“Going in for surgery in the next couple days.
“Loved being in the cage even though I had to push through some adversities to grit out the win.
I suffered a displaced Bucket Handle tear of the Lateral Meniscus and a Lateral Collateral Ligament (LCL) rupture
TJ Dillashaw on Instagram
“Thank you for the support, it’s belt season now.”
Dillashaw’s clash with Sandhagen was his first outing since the completion of his two-year suspension for intentionally taking EPO.
The win has put the 35-year-old back in immediate contention to reclaim the 135lb title he was stripped of in March 2019.
Champion Aljamain Sterling will defend the bantamweight strap against Petr Yan in a rematch in the main event of UFC 267 on October 30.
And Dillashaw is confident of wrestling the belt away from the winner of the Abu Dhabi dust-up.
In his post-fight interview, The Ultimate Fighter season 14 winner said: “Easy money for that belt right now. Of course, a title fight [next].”
The former Team Alpha Male standout was delighted to have silenced his detractors, saying: “I wasn’t worried about the naysayers.
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“I knew I was going to get this victory. Very tough fight. To me, this was the title fight. Cory Sandhagen is legit.
“I’ve trained with him. I knew he was that good before he knew he was that good.”
He added: “I shut everyone up. It feels good.”