Cejudo at crossroads
Following his defeat to Merab Dvalishvili, former two-weight UFC champion and Olympic gold medalist Henry Cejudo seeks renewed career motivation.
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) has recently provided fight fans with a rollercoaster of emotions, akin to a suspense thriller film. The past two weeks have been riddled with surprises and heartbreaks.
Standing out from the rest were Ilia Topuria’s remarkable knockout triumph over the seasoned Alexander Volkanovski, while Robert Whittaker’s commanding unanimous decision win against Paulo Costa demonstrated his resilience and determination to bounce back into the spotlight.
Adding to the excitement, Dana White, the CEO of the UFC, unveiled the highly anticipated lineup for UFC 300, slated for April 14. The main event will feature Jamahal Hill squaring off against Alex Pereira for the coveted light heavyweight title.
Amidst the glare of the spotlight, a significant narrative unfolded quietly in the background— the unexpected turn of events for former two-weight champion Henry Cejudo.
Prior to his bout with Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298, Cejudo had hinted at retirement should he fail to secure victory inside the octagon. Much to his dismay, Cejudo ultimately lost against Dvalishvili in a unanimous decision.
However, the 37-year-old isn’t quite ready to call it a career after re-evaluating it in the days that followed.
“If I could change everything, I probably would never come back, but now I’m back,”
Cejudo said in a video titled — ‘Am I done?’ — on his Youtubechannel.
Cejudo, a decorated wrestler, emerged onto the MMA scene in 2013 following a remarkable
Olympic career, which included a gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics in 55kg freestyle wrestling.
He kicked off his MMA career with a spotless 6-0 record, and eventually, the UFC came calling. He went on to defend his title twice and further added a cherry on top by clinching the vacant bantamweight title.
The American is currently ranked sixth in the bantamweight division, winning 16 out of 20 fights. He boasts an impressive record of eight wins by knockout and five first-round finishes. Triple C will be hoping to upend his momentum, and he has to just look at his past for a spark of inspiration. This is not the first time that Cejudo has dropped two fights in a row — the title fight against Aljamain Sterling and now Dvalishvili.
The first instance, which happened way back in 2016, set off an incredible turn of events. He went on to win six fights on the trot, which included back-to-back title wins, and will be hoping to at least emulate a percentage of his past in the near future.