TJ Dillashaw congratulates friend Jesse Taylor on winning TUF

Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw sat cageside Friday night as his former Cal State Fullerton wrestling teammate, and TUF Redemption Team Dillashaw member, Jesse Taylor defeat Dhiego Lima to become the winner of TUF Redemption. Taylor’s win comes nine years after he was set to compete in the TUF Finale after advancing to the finals in The Ultimate Fighter: Team Rampage vs. Team Griffin.

The win was an extremely impressive one for Taylor, who used his wrestling to secure a submission win to solidify his place on the UFC roster.

Check out Dillashaw’s post below:

Congratulations to my man @jtmoneymma! A true redemption story. What a journey, from our Cal State Fullerton wrestling days together to this. I'm so glad to be a part of your redemption story. I could not be more proud of @dhlimamma. Keep your head up your journey is not over. What an honor to have you both in the finals, job well done boys!!!

A post shared by tjdillashaw (@tjdillashaw) on Jul 7, 2017 at 8:54pm PDT

Dillashaw wasn’t the only one to be thrilled for Taylor, as many members of the MMA community took to social media to congratulate Taylor:

Incredible storyline for Jesse Taylor.

TUF Finalist 9 years ago, Kicked off the show.

Comes back and wins the show 9 years later. Wow.

— Chase Sherman (@ChaseShermanUFC) July 8, 2017

That is the coolest shit ever, this is what makes MMA so awesome. Congrats Jesse Taylor. @ufc #ufctuffinale #tuf25finale

— Ray Borg (@tazmexufc) July 8, 2017

THE MOMENT! Jesse Taylor is your @ultimatefighter champion! #TUF25Finale https://t.co/JaFrtWCgdk

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) July 8, 2017

IT IS ALL OVER! JESSE TAYLOR IS YOUR #TUFREDEMPTION CHAMPION!

— FOX Sports: UFC (@UFCONFOX) July 8, 2017

YES!!! If anybody deserves it it's this guy never gave up never quit man I'm so happy for him!!! @jtmoneymma

A post shared by Chris Leben (@chrislebenmma) on Jul 7, 2017 at 8:37pm PDT

on 7/8/2017.