Former flyweight and bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo is retiring for the second and likely final time.
Cejudo, an Olympic gold medalist, faces Payton Talbott this weekend at UFC 323 in Las Vegas. The card is the final Pay-Per-View of the ESPN era (there’s another Fight Night, even to conclude that partnership), and will also play host to Cejudo’s retirement fight, he confirmed Tuesday.
“This is it for me, guys,” Cejudo said during a media bash (h/t MMA junkie) prior to the event. “This is it for me, unless Dana [White] If I get into a big fight with another Mexican, I’m willing to do it. Furthermore, I think I have done everything at the highest level since I was 11. From losing weight at that damn moment, and there’s just a lot of satisfaction in my life. I’m also ready to move on. I have some kids who want to play with their dad 24/7.
It will be the second retirement for Cejudo, who left the sport in his prime in 2020 after defending his bantamweight title against Dominick Cruz at UFC 249 in May. That win capped a six-fight winning streak that saw Henry Cejudo dethrone flyweight great Demetrious Johnson to capture the UFC’s 125lb title and then defend it against bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw.
A second fight against bantamweight champion Dillashaw was booked in a rare case of creative matchmaking in the UFC, only for Dillashaw to fail a drug test and vacate his title.
Cejudo instead won his second title by defeating Marlon Moraes for the vacant title, then defended it against Cruz.
Since returning from retirement in 2023, Cejudo has gone 0-3 and has struggled to return to championship form. All three of these losses came by decision.
#Henry #Cejudo #retires #UFC #ready #move