Dominick Cruz doesn’t believe T.J. Dillashaw can overcome the mental anguish that comes with his Team Alpha Male (TAM) feud.
Dillashaw is set to compete against Cody Garbrandt for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bantamweight title on July 8. The two will meet inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada as part of the UFC 213 card.
Cruz feels Garbrandt has the edge going into the fight due to Dillashaw’s beef with TAM. “The Dominator” told Ariel Helwani on MMAFighting.com‘s “The MMA Hour,” that Dillashaw isn’t just battling “No Love:”
“I think stylistically, TJ has the technique and the tools to beat a guy like Cody. He kicks fluently, he mixes his punches and kicks. Cody has the edge in the power in the pocket, but TJ can make up the pocket work with kicks, movement, and angles, and he’s kicking a little bit more than I did against Cody, so I think that will play to his advantage. But as for the mental game, I think the fact that TJ is facing that whole camp, not just Cody Garbrandt, I think that’s really wearing on TJ. I think it’s going to keep wearing on him. I think the mental is what gets him beat against Cody.”
