Earlier in October, it was announced that T.J. Dillashaw was parting ways with Team Alpha Male to train full-time at Elevation Fight Team in Colorado.
The bantamweight champion cited financial gain as the reason for leaving the camp but many feel as though former TAM coach Duane Ludwig had something to do with it. Urijah Faber accused "Bang" of being sexist and racist on The MMA Hour but Dillashaw will still be training under the guidance of the 37-year-old in Colorado.
TJ was recently featured on a UFC on FOX promo and claimed that Faber was upset about some the ideas he was putting forward about beating Dominick Cruz in camp.
"Dominick had the belt when I decided to start fighting," Dillashaw said. "Joseph (Benavidez) had a super close fight with him - a split decision. We trained hard for that one, and then helping Urijah train for Dominic. You know, I was going through the same camp as they were going through, and learning the techniques that we were going to do against him, and seeing his mistakes for a long time. The ideas that I had are the ones that I still think are gonna work, but they weren't utilized. I'm excited to be able to prove that. I think this is something that's been bothering Urijah, even longer than I expected, me coming out and training in Colorado. I think people are getting under his skin, about him thinking that I'm traiting on him."
The Ultimate Fighter 14 finalist went on to call Dominick Cruz a "point fighter" and vows to dominate the former champion on Jan. 17.
"I don't think he realizes how much better I am than he is. I've always thought of Dominic as a real boring fighter, a point fighter. We call him the Decisionator, never going for the finish. This isn't high school girl drama. I'm not looking to see who's the best at talking. I'm looking to get inside that cage and kick your ass. You know, I do all my talking inside the Octagon."
T.J. Dillashaw vs. Dominick Cruz will headline the UFC Fight Night 81 event at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts on January 17th. And, if Dillashaw successfully retains his title, it's expected that the 29-year-old will collide with former teammate Urijah Faber in the future.
(Transcriptions via Bloody Elbow's Stephie Haynes)