Henry Cejudo’s title win means UFC’s “superfight” is here to stay.
LOS ANGELES – The cross-division “superfight” is the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s latest fad and, as with all such things, it is a good idea until some other big new thing comes along.
The dust hadn’t even hit the canvas, let alone settled, and already the biggest takeaway from UFC 227 on Saturday night was an all-eyes-forward glance toward a potential clash between brand new flyweight champion Henry Cejudo and bantamweight title holder T.J. Dillashaw.
Both men turned in supremely impressive performances to cap off a hugely entertaining night at the Staples Center, a reminder, if one was needed, that a stash of celebrity names is not a pre-requisite for a top quality show.
Cejudo ended the long and distinguished run of Demetrious Johnson, the UFC’s only flyweight champion in its history until the moment that he was unseated, who was unable to reel off an 12th consecutive title defense. Olympic freestyle wrestling champion Cejudo won a split decision, then wasted no time in calling out the winner of Dillashaw’s battle with Cody Garbrandt that would follow minutes later.
Dillashaw took out Garbrandt with a ferocious flurry in the opening round, uncorking a huge right hand, following up with a stunning knee to the chin and an onslaught of strikes, before referee Herb Dean waved it off.
Asked immediately about Cejudo’s challenge, Dillashaw had little hesitation. “Bring it on, baby,” he said.
Fighting champions trying to dominate in more than one weight class is a relatively new phenomenon in the UFC, but boy, it has taken off fast. Conor McGregor – remember him? – moved up to take the lightweight belt in 2016 before having defended his featherweight title a single time, then embarked upon a flirtation with boxing and a long hiatus from the octagon that will end in October. Daniel Cormier has enjoyed great success of late, shifting upwards from light heavyweight to rip away Stipe Miocic’s heavyweight crown, and establish himself as the organization’s top pound-for-pound fighter in the process.
Cejudo and Dillashaw might not have quite the same promotional gravitas as that pair – little guys don’t seem to get the same respect, lamentably. But it could be a mightily watchable contest between two technical scrappers with endless heart.
Some of the purists don’t like the very premise of the superfight, preferring the divisions to keep to themselves and allowing the natural order of things to work their way through. But this is the fight game, and the making of the best mass-appeal bouts is not only good business, it is the name of the business.
Cejudo, a likeable character with a compelling story as the son of Mexican immigrants and whose mother could not travel to watch him compete in Beijing 10 years ago because of her citizenship status, makes a good case for why he should take on Dillashaw next.
“They talked about a T.J/D.J. (Johnson) superfight,” Cejudo said. “Now that I am the winner I am asking. I am Olympic champ, UFC champ, now I am asking to be a triple champ. Allow me to go up and face Dillashaw.”
Johnson complained long and hard about not being given a greater promotional push by the UFC, but he spurned the chance to take on Dillashaw for both belts in what would have been a significant payday. Now, he must work his way forwards again, such is the unfortunate plight of those who suffer setbacks in one of the toughest competitions of all.
Life in the octagon is unpredictable and so things go for the UFC itself. Things seemed troubled several months back with McGregor’s behavior then highly erratic, Ronda Rousey retired and Jon Jones suspended for his latest doping infraction.
Now it has McGregor returning, some strong momentum after a series of solid cards filled with action, and the prospect of more good things to come. Among all that, is the underlying theme of the superfight, which every fighter now seems to want, and for time being, the audience is happy to get on board with.