The next time José Aldo competes inside the Octagon, he expects to see another former champion standing across from him in T.J. Dillashaw.
At UFC 265, José Aldo picked up his third victory in a row when he defeated Pedro Munhoz in the night’s co-main event. Entering the fight already ranked in the top 5 (#5), Aldo hopes that another win will score him a marquee fight against former two-time bantamweight champion and current #2 contender T.J. Dillashaw (h/t MMA Fighting).
“It would be great for me to fight with Dillashaw,” Aldo said at the UFC 265 post-fight press conference. “Hopefully by December, I think it would be a great fight. That’s what we expect. That’s what I’m expecting right now.”
As things currently stand, T.J. Dillashaw has some expectations of his own, which is to face the winner of the upcoming bantamweight title fight between Aljamain Sterling© and Petr Yan. After defeating Cory Sandhagen in the UFC Vegas 32 main event two weeks ago, that put Dillashaw in the driver’s seat, where he can either wait to see who will emerge as his championship opponent, or he can opt to remain active by taking another fight in the meantime.
Dillashaw has stated that he would be willing to take another fight if the wait for a title shot proves to be too long, so it was a good move for Aldo to make this callout. A victory over Dillashaw would more than likely make Aldo the next top contender for the world title in what would be his second time competing for bantamweight gold.
Dillashaw just underwent surgery for a bucket tear of the lateral meniscus and an LCL rupture. Fortunately for Dillashaw (and potentially Aldo), the recovery time for both injuries is typically less than two months.
With José Aldo still competing at a very high level, he is still a name tossed around for many a dream match. In particular, fans have clamored to see the Brazilian face off against fellow WEC/UFC legend Dominick Cruz. But now that Aldo defeated the #9-ranked bantamweight Pedro Munhoz, who is currently ranked above Cruz (#10), Aldo is offering fans another dream match instead that carries much higher stakes.
Who do you think would win between José Aldo and T.J. Dillashaw after watching their last performances?
