Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) invaded United Center last night (Sat., June 8, 2019) in Chicago, Illinois to stage UFC 238. The event featured a Bantamweight title fight that saw Henry Cejudo demolish Marlon Moraes via third round technical knockout (TKO) to win the vacant 135-pound strap and become UFC’s latest champ-champ (see it). Also, Valentina Shevchenko knocked out Jessica Eye with a vicious head kick to hold on to her women’s Flyweight strap.
Biggest Winner: Henry Cejudo
Cejudo made history once again by adding to his ever-impressive and growing resume in the combat sports world, becoming UFC’s latest champ-champ after knocking out Marlon Moraes in the third round of their 135-pound title fight. He now holds the 125-pound and 135-pound straps, wins over Demetrious Johnson and T.J. Dillashaw, as well as an Olympic gold medal. That’s a pretty high bar set by “The Messenger.”
All cheesy pre-fight antics and trash talk aside, Henry can flat out scrap, as he is the first man to finish Moraes in the last eight years. Indeed, with his latest win, Henry can pretty much write his own ticket moving forward, though his next title defense is a bit murky since we’re still not 100-percent sure if the Flyweight division will stick around for the long haul. After his win, Henry called out pretty much everyone in the lower weight classes, even vowing to go up to Featherweight in search of another title.
Runner Up: Valentina Shevchenko
“Bullet” proved without a shadow of a doubt that she is truly one of the best female MMA fighters in the world by dominating Jessica Eye in the opening frame before knocking her out with one of the most vicious head kick knockouts in recent memory in round two.
Over the last eight years, Valentina’s only losses have come against current champ-champ, Amanda Nunes, which is nothing to hang one’s head low over. Indeed, Shevchenko seems primed to go on a record-run at Flyweight, as there doesn’t seem to be anyone in the division at the moment that poses a legit threat to one of the most well-rounded fighters around.
Honorable mention: Tony Ferguson
While his win over Donald Cerrone didn’t come as he would’ve liked — a doctor’s stoppage due to “Cowboy’s” mistake of blowing his broken nose — a win is a win for “El Cucuy,” who has gone to the winner’s circle 12 straight times now. The victory should put him at the top of the list for a shot at the Lightweight title, and could potentially set up a much-desired showdown against Khabib Nurmagomedov should “The Eagle” get through Dustin Poirier at UFC 242. But don’t get it twisted, a fight against “The Diamond” will also be a banger, but Ferguson and Khabib have a ton of history and bad blood, as they’ve teased us with a potential war time and time again.
Biggest Loser: Marlon Moraes
Marlon is one of the best fighters in the game today, but he takes this slot after failing to take down Cejudo in “The Windy City” after seemingly finding a way to solve the puzzle early on. The “Magic” man looked good to start, peppering Henry with one leg kick after another, leaving “The Messenger” searching for answers he simply couldn’t find in the first five minutes.
While Marlon hung tough in round two, clipping Henry in the final seconds to stun him, he simply didn’t have much to offer in round three. Indeed, Cejudo picked up the pace, the velocity and the power in the third frame and ultimately scored a TKO win over the Brazilian bomber to earn his second title in as many divisions. For Marlon, it’s a huge loss, as it seems the 135-pound weight class might get a bit more crowded in the coming months with the potential addition of the Flyweights. That means getting back to the big dance will be just a bit tougher.
For complete UFC 238 results and coverage click here.