He knew he had back problems the entire time during the filming. Yeah he mentioned TJ for a few seconds in the cage, but when the adrenaline went down you saw the truth in the post fight presser and every interview after.
None of this matters. He couldn't duck TJ if he wanted to. There's 2 guys int he division that are worth his time, and bring him the most money, and that's Dom and TJ.
And he's been talking about TJ, and talking shit about him for an entire year. Where on earth do you even remotely get the sense that he doesn't want to fight TJ. Also, the fact that he actually signed off on doing TUF with TJ pretty much forces him to fight TJ, back problem or not. It's not like he's gonna fight someone else when he gets back from his injury, so what does it matter?
And if he was really scared, and didn't want to fight him, again, he wouldn't have done TUF, and built up interest, and the rivalry between them. He'd have played humble, and acted non chalant, and try not to create buzz and interest. And besides, are you really that crazy, and think a guy that schooled Dominick freaking Cruz is actually nervous or scared to fight any 135 lb. fighter? Hell, even if he got whooped up all around the practice mats against TJ, beating Dom should raise your confidence a tad bit. He probably literally thinks he can't be beaten for the next decade. He genuinely called out Aldo and Conor for God's sake, but TJ's the boogeyman now? SMDH.....
Damn, I wasted a rant on this troll thread. You win.
