TJ Dillashaw officially eligible to fight again

Former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw is officially eligible to fight again after being suspended two years by the United States Anti-Doping Agency.

Dillashaw was suspended in the wake of a TKO loss to then flyweight champion TJ Dillashaw after testing positive for the injectable-only banned substance recombinant human erythropoietin (EPO).

As of Monday, his suspension is officially over.

At the time of the incident, UFC Vice President of Athlete Health and Performance emphasized the seriousness of Dillashaw testing positive for EPO.

“I’m quite familiar with EPO from my days investigating professional cycling teams.” Novitzky said (via LowKickMMA). “It’s a very effective substance. It’s not a substance you find in contaminated supplements, it’s injectable only. You have to know what you’re doing when it enters your system.

”On a scale of seriousness in anti-doping, it’s up near the top.

Thankfully, Dillashaw owned up to his mistake, which is part of the reason he received some leniency from USADA.

While he obviously didn’t intend to lose two years of his prime to a suspension, the former champion has also been able to find some silver linings.

“This suspension has been somewhat of a blessing,” TJ Dillashaw told theScore in 2019. “Obviously it’s a real shitty situation. [But] you’ve got to turn a negative into a positive as best you can. I’ve really got to focus on my business side of things. I have a cold press juice company that I’m opening here in Yorba Linda. I’m actually becoming the area developer for all of Southern California, which is a real big deal. We plan on opening 63 stores in Southern California. I have some other projects in the works where I’m a silent (partner) in.

“I’ve also got a one-and-a-half-year-old son that I’ve got to spend a lot of time with,” Dillashaw said. “That first year of his life, I didn’t get to put in as much time as I wanted to because I was so busy worrying about the next fight So it’s been a good distraction for me.”

Who do you want to see TJ Dillashaw fight in his return to the Octagon?