Bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw dropped a bombshell today as he revealed he was relinquishing his title as the result of an adverse drug test result administered by USADA in relation to his flyweight title bout with Henry Cejudo in January.
“To all my fans, I wanted to be the first one to let you know that USADA and the NYSAC have informed me of an adverse finding in a test taken for my last fight,” Dillashaw wrote on Instagram. “While words can’t even begin to express how disappointed I am at this time, please know that I’m working with my team to understand what has occurred and how to resolve this situation as quickly as possible.
“Out of fairness and respect to the rest of my division, I’m informed the UFC that I’ll be voluntarily relinquishing my title while I deal with this matter. I want to thank all of you in advance for the support.”
Dillashaw has also been suspended for one year by the New York State Athletic Commission and been fined $10,000, meaning he won’t be eligible to compete again until January 19th of 2020, while USADA have yet to rule on any punishment that they might hand out.
Dillashaw was already reeling from having been TKO’d in just 32 seconds by Cejudo at the UFC On ESPN+ 1 event in January, which had seen him looking to drop down to flyweight to become a double-champion, and today’s revelation leaves him without even his bantamweight title to fall back on and his reputation damaged.
