TJ Dillashaw wonders if involvement with Union will come back to haunt him

Earlier this month, former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw was one of several high-profile UFC fighters who emerged as part of the MMA Athletes Association. In addition to Dillashaw, former UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St-Pierre, former UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez, and top ranked fighters Donald Cerrone and Tim Kennedy all announced their involvement.

Leading up to Dillashaw’s UFC 207 fight with John Lineker, many expected the winner to receive a bantamweight title shot against the winner of the co-main event scrap between Dominick Cruz and Cody Garbrandt. Despite that, Sean Shelby stated this week that the winner isn’t necessarily guaranteed a title shot. Now, ahead of the fight, the former champ is wondering if his involvement with the MMAAA may come back to bite him.

He spoke to MMAJunkie:

“It does scare me,” he told MMAjunkie Radio. “It’s definitely in the back of my head.”

“Other than getting avoided for title shots, I have no proof of being screwed over,” he said. “If it happens again, we’ll have to figure something out. I’ll have to make a bigger stink in the media that they are treating fighters wrongly. It’s just not professional. This is a sport. There shouldn’t be any grudges on who I’m managed by. It’s not my fault, to punish me just because you don’t like my management.”

In regards to his upcoming fight with Lineker, Dillashaw plans to let his fighting do the talking:

“I think I always want to make a statement, no matter who I’m fighting,” he said. “I want to go out there and entertain. I’m not going to go out of my comfort zone and possibly get too crazy and lose a fight. But no matter what happens, as long as I beat John Lineker, I’m making a statement. I will finish the guy.”