If these are Henry Cejudo’s capabilities when he makes the 125-pound limit, we might be looking at a potential contender to Demetrious Johnson’s flyweight title.
“I won gold in 2008, and I want gold in the UFC,” said Cariaso (8-0).
Cejudo made it look easy against veteran Chris Cariaso (17-7) on Saturday night at UFC 186 in Dallas. Cejudo dominated all aspects of the fight to earn a unanimous decision victory, on scores of 30-27 across the board.
The 2008 Olympic wrestling gold medalist, had to pull out of his planned UFC debut against Scott Jorgensen at UFC 177 after a weight cut gone awry. He had previously missed weight at 125 several times before entering the UFC as well.
Cejudo went up to bantamweight dominated Dustin Kimura, then asked for another chance at 125.
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Saturday, he proved what he could do if given such a chance. Cejudo used crisp striking and effortlessly landed a half-dozen takedowns over the course of the fight. Cariaso, coming off a loss to Johnson at UFC 178, was game, but could never get on track.
While by all counts the showing was impressive, Cejudo himself didn’t seem too pleased with his handiwork.
“I’m fatigued a little bit,” he said. “I put myself at a very high standard. It is what it is. I want to knock someone out.”