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T.J. Dillashaw, coach Duane Ludwig see true challenge in Max Holloway at featherweight
UFC bantamweight champ T.J. Dillashaw has a fight with the scale in the next seven days as he moves down to flyweight to challenge champ Henry Cejudo.
But the time may come when Dillashaw (16-3 MMA, 12-3 UFC) lets himself go and bulks up to the featherweight division that Max Holloway (20-3 MMA, 16-3 UFC) rules.
“Everyone wants me to go to featherweight and fight Max,” Dillashaw, who faces Cejudo (13-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) at UFC on ESPN+ 1, said during a recent Instagram live video. “I would love to. But look, one step at a time. Let’s run through Cejudo first then Max can be next. [I can] be the first one to ever go for three belts.”
Dillashaw’s longtime coach Duane Ludwig said that a move up to 145 pounds is “in the realm of possibility.” Perhaps surprisingly, though, he anticipates a heavier weight class is a tougher job.
“I think that would be more of a challenge to go up in weight than it has been to go down in weight,” Ludwig told MMAjunkie. “T.J. is not a big bantamweight anyway. Going up in weight, that’s when we’ll see more change.
“I assume he would become possibly a little slower, but have more power. But we’ll see what ends up happening if that’s the journey for us. Right now we’re focused on the task at hand.”
UFC on ESPN+ 1 takes place Saturday at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. Dillashaw vs. Cejudo headlines the main card, which streams on ESPN+ following televised prelims on ESPN and early prelims on ESPN+.
UFC fans have watched Dillashaw shrink since the UFC booked the flyweight superfight. The bantamweight champ appears to be taking all the necessary steps to lose the pounds without endangering his health. But as a smaller fighter, any significant loss represents a higher percentage of bodyweight. A 10-pound drop is approximately eight percent of bodyweight for a 135-pound fighter.
Recent UFC history is littered with examples of fighters whose weight cuts went well in camp, only to fall apart in the final hours as they made one final push to reach the required limit.
Despite his first trip to flyweight, Dillashaw has remained confident that he’ll be able to compete without issue. The payoff is potentially huge – a place in history as the fourth UFC fighter to simultaneously hold titles in two separate divisions.
A featherweight title, on the other hand, would be unmatched by any other fighter to date if Dillashaw added it to his collection. It could also be a lot easier on his body, though he recently cautioned that adding functional weight bulk is a challenge of its own.
“Would I move up to 145? Absolutely,” he said. “I would love to. I’m a professional. I train hard. Making (125) has been a process in its own. … To get my body down there and do it the right way. (145) would have to be the same thing, it would be a lot of work.”
If there’s one thing Dillashaw doesn’t want in a fight is a disadvantage in power. And in addition to being one of the larger featherweights in the division, Holloway keeps a high work rate that amplifies the effect of his punches.
Holloway himself has been pushed to move up in weight. But he’s resisted a permanent move likely for the same reasons as Dillashaw.
So for now, file Dillashaw vs. Holloway as an interesting idea and not much else. Dillashaw has the scale and Cejudo to get past.
For more on UFC on ESPN+ 1, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.
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