Dana White: UFC plans title eliminator for T.J. Dillashaw – not immediate title shot

T.J. Dillashaw will have to fight at least once before getting another crack at UFC title gold, according to his boss, UFC president Dana White.

Despite Dillashaw’s recent statement that he’d be willing to jump right into a title fight, White revealed Thursday the promotion has different plans for the 35-year-old fighter.

With the UFC bantamweight champion Petr Yan defending his title against Aljamain Sterling at UFC 259 on Saturday, Dillashaw will have to fight once more in order to get dibs on the title fight winner.

“We’re working on something for T.J. right now that would line him up (where) the winner of that fight would fight for the title next,” White told ESPN on Thursday.

A former UFC bantamweight champion, Dillashaw (16-4 MMA, 12-4 UFC) recently completed a two-year USADA suspension stemming from a positive drug test for EPO in January 2019 – the testing timeframe of his first-round TKO loss in a flyweight title challenge against then-champion Henry Cejudo.

“I’m in a good situation,” Dillashaw said in a recent interview during a guest appearance on the Real Quick With Mike Swick Podcast. “I think everyone in the top five has called me out. I want to come back and fight the best. I’m 35 years old now, I’ve got a lot of things in life going on, so I want to come back and prove that I’m the best bantamweight of all time, and I want to come back and fight the best. If that’s for the belt right away then so be it. If that’s fighting someone else in the top five, awesome.”

While White did not reveal a particular name for Dillashaw’s next fight, 135-pound contenders Cory Sandhagen, Rob Font, Cody Garbrandt, and Jose Aldo are all opponentless at this time.