Former bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw’s comeback fight against Cory Sandhagen after a lengthy USADA suspension has had to be scrapped due to the 35-year-old suffering a cut while training for their headlining fight on May 8th.
“I’m sad to say that I have to be pulled from my fight on May 8th due to a cut received from a head butt while drilling,” Dillashaw wrote on Instagram. “Rescheduling the fight as soon as possible.”
Additional reporting from MMAJunkie had suggested that Dillashaw had been battling an infection as a result of the cut, but had still hoped to be well enough to compete, before finally coming to the decision to pull the plug on the fight for the time being.
This is another blow for Dillashaw, who has already had to sit on the sidelines for two years while serving a USADA ban after testing positive for EPO and HGH following his bid to become a two-division champion against the flyweight titleholder at the time, Henry Cejudo.
Despite his use of PED’s, Dillashaw was TKO’d by Cejudo in just 32 seconds, bringing an end to a four-fight winning streak, and the drug suspension on top of that has damaged his reputation immeasurably, so he has a lot to prove when he does finally return to the Octagon.
As for Sandhagen, he’s won seven of his eight UFC bouts to date, and after recent wins over Marlon Moraes and Frankie Edgar is currently ranked No.2 in the division.
With Dillashaw vs. Sandhagen being scratched from the show, the latest word is that a fight between Michelle Waterson and Marina Rodriguez is now the frontrunner to take headlining duties at UFC On ESPN 24.
