Tag: Henry Cejudo

Report – Ex-Champion Henry Cejudo set to fight Merab Dvalishvili in clash at UFC 298 in Anaheim

Henry Cejudo set to fight Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298 in February in AnaheimFormer undisputed flyweight and bantamweight champion, Henry Cejudo is set for his return to the Octagon at a UFC…

Henry Cejudo set to fight Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298 in February in Anaheim

Former undisputed flyweight and bantamweight champion, Henry Cejudo is set for his return to the Octagon at a UFC 298 pay-per-view card on February 17. from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California – taking on surging Georgian contender, Merab Dvalishvili in a potential title-elimonator.

Cejudo, the current number three ranked bantamweight contender, snapped his three-year retirement from mixed martial arts back in August against Dvalishvili’s training partner and then-champion, Aljamain Sterling – suffering a split decision loss to the Uniondale native in the pair’s championship clash.

Henry Cejudo confirms Merab Dvalishvili fight at UFC 298

And as for Tbilisi native, Dvalishvili, the streaking contender currently holds the number two rank in the division, landing a one-sided unanimous decision win over former champion, Petr Yan in the pair’s main event clash at UFC Las Vegas back in March. Olympic gold medal winner, Henry Cejudo confirmed the pairing between himself and Merab Dvalishvili on his official YouTube channel.

16-3 as a professional, Los Angeles-born veteran, Cejudo had landed a successful bantamweight title defense against former two-time divisional champion, Dominick Cruz at UFC 249 back in 2020 – stopping the ex-titleholder with a series of late strikes, before stunningly calling time on his illustrious professional career.

As for Dvalishvili, the 16-4 contender added Russian former champion, Yan to an undefeated streak spanning nine fights with his unanimous decision shutout win back in March of this year.

UFC 298 takes place on February 17. from the Honda Center in Anaheim, California, with an undisputed featherweight title fight between champion, Alexander Volkanovski, and challenger, Ilia Topuria set to take main event honors.

Who wins at UFC 298 in Anaheim: Henry Cejudo or Merab Dvalishvili?

jiri prochazka warned of poor striking defence ahead of UFC 295: ‘that may cost you against Alex Pereira’

Jiri Prochazka warned poor striking defense cost him against Alex Pereira at UFC 295Henry Cejudo warns Jiri Prochazka about his striking defence heading into his bout against Alex Pereira. On November 11,…

Jiri Prochazka warned poor striking defense cost him against Alex Pereira at UFC 295

Henry Cejudo warns Jiri Prochazka about his striking defence heading into his bout against Alex Pereira.

On November 11, two of the UFC’s most devastating strikers are set to do battle for the vacant light-heavyweight title. After successfully defeating Jan Blachowicz in his first fight at the 205lb limit, Pereira was immediately slotted in to be one half of the fight for Jamahal Hill’s recently vacated title.

Having never actually lost his title, vacating his title after suffering a shoulder injury, it was only right that Prochazka was granted shot upon his return.

Throughout their UFC careers the pair have produced brutal finishes, and have been apart of exciting contests. Pereira is the more schooled of the two having won titles in two divisions as a glory kickboxer. The Brazilian also poses elite power, having numerous highlight reel knockouts to his name.

Prochazka brings a unconventional approach to striking, taking inspiration from more traditional martial arts. The 31-year-old is very unpredictable and too holds serious power – Prochazka is a real threat and is willing to battle through adversity to earn victory.

Henry Cejudo critical of Jiri Prochazka’s defence

Prochazka is a proven finisher, but is also no stranger to being dropped and hurt in his contests.

Discussing the matchup, Henry Cejudo feels that this could not be a good sign when heading into a fight with someone like Pereira, claiming that the ‘hittable’ Prochazka could

“The technique, as good as you are with everything, there’s one area where I feel like you really need to get better at — two areas,” Cejudo said. (transcribed by Farah Hannoun). “Your defence, with your hands: I don’t like seeing you get hit because that may cost you against a guy like Alex Pereira. Then the other thing, too, is your takedown defence. Your takedown defence is still a little suspect.” (H/T MMA Mania)

Along with winning titles in the UFC, Cejudo also spends a lot of time working on his YouTube channel where he will post technique and fight breakdowns.

Henry Cejudo breaks down Jiri Prochazka’s game

Do you agree with Henry Cejudo’s take on Jiri Prochazka?

Ex-UFC Champ Urges Alexander Volkanovski to Take Some Time off and Heal: ‘He’s not the same guy’

Alexander VolkanovskiFormer two-division champion Henry Cejudo believes Alexander Volkanovski may have unintentionally exposed himself following his devastating loss to Islam…

Alexander Volkanovski

Former two-division champion Henry Cejudo believes Alexander Volkanovski may have unintentionally exposed himself following his devastating loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 294.

After narrowly dethroning the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ in their February Fight of the Year contender, Volkanovski accepted a rematch on just 11 days’ notice, stepping in for Makhachev’s originally scheduled UFC 294 opponent, Charles Oliveira. Despite the short-notice nature of the matchup, ‘The Great’ went into the bout with the utmost confidence.

Tragically, Volkanovski would come crashing back down to reality just three minutes into the contest when Islam Makhachev landed a perfectly timed head kick that spelled the end of Volkanovski’s dreams to become a dual-world champion.

Following the event, an emotional Alexander Volkanovski revealed his “struggle” to remain active inside the Octagon, even in the most unfavorable of situations.

“I put myself in his position,” Cejudo said on his YouTube channel. “I think the biggest mistake that Alexander could do is share a lot of who he is as a person to the people. Why do I say that? ‘I’m going through anxieties, I need to stay busy guys, I go crazy if I don’t stay busy or if I don’t fight.’ If I’m a competitor and I’m seeing all that, especially seeing him get knocked out, you know what I’m gonna be doing? I’m gonna be picking at him.”

“If I’m Ilia [Topuria], if I know that he’s concussed, and I know that he goes crazy when he’s not fighting or he’s at home or he goes through anxiety. If I’m Ilia Topuria, you guys know what I’m thinking? I’m thinking about calling this dude out and getting him to step up still on January 20th to have a better chance of actually beating him. You see, there’s times when you’ve gotta keep things to yourself. When you don’t keep things to yourself, you start to expose yourself” (h/t MMA Mania).

Henry Cejudo Urges Volkanovski to take him time

Despite the setback in Abu Dhabi, Volkanovski remains in talks to defend his featherweight title against No. 5 ranked contender Ilia Topuria at UFC 297 on January 20 in Toronto. That would give ‘The Great’ less than three months to prepare for what could very well be the toughest test of his reign as the 145-pound champion.

“If I’m Ilia Topuria on the flip side, you know what I’m thinking? I have to pick a fight with him,” Cejudo continued. “I have to get him to fight me on January 20th because the simple fact that he’s concussed. He’s concussed, it’s not the same Alexander Volkanovski that was out here finishing all these opponents … he’s not the same guy.

“If I’m Alexander Volkanovski on the flip side, you know what I’m doing? I gotta humble myself,” Cejudo said. “I gotta allow my brain to heal for the next six months. I’ve been concussed. Being concussed or going through a knockout, it takes you a minute for you to really kind of start walking that straight line. So there’s two sides. Volk, take your damn time. I wouldn’t necessarily be in a rush. You’re gonna have to humble yourself. Yeah, I’m saying humble yourself because it shouldn’t be about ego or pride. It should be about winning.”

The UFC is expected to make an announcement regarding UFC 297 in the coming weeks.

Ex-UFC Champ Urges Alexander Volkanovski to Take Some Time off and Heal: ‘He’s not the same guy’

Alexander VolkanovskiFormer two-division champion Henry Cejudo believes Alexander Volkanovski may have unintentionally exposed himself following his devastating loss to Islam…

Alexander Volkanovski

Former two-division champion Henry Cejudo believes Alexander Volkanovski may have unintentionally exposed himself following his devastating loss to Islam Makhachev at UFC 294.

After narrowly dethroning the ‘Dagestani Destroyer’ in their February Fight of the Year contender, Volkanovski accepted a rematch on just 11 days’ notice, stepping in for Makhachev’s originally scheduled UFC 294 opponent, Charles Oliveira. Despite the short-notice nature of the matchup, ‘The Great’ went into the bout with the utmost confidence.

Tragically, Volkanovski would come crashing back down to reality just three minutes into the contest when Islam Makhachev landed a perfectly timed head kick that spelled the end of Volkanovski’s dreams to become a dual-world champion.

Following the event, an emotional Alexander Volkanovski revealed his “struggle” to remain active inside the Octagon, even in the most unfavorable of situations.

“I put myself in his position,” Cejudo said on his YouTube channel. “I think the biggest mistake that Alexander could do is share a lot of who he is as a person to the people. Why do I say that? ‘I’m going through anxieties, I need to stay busy guys, I go crazy if I don’t stay busy or if I don’t fight.’ If I’m a competitor and I’m seeing all that, especially seeing him get knocked out, you know what I’m gonna be doing? I’m gonna be picking at him.”

“If I’m Ilia [Topuria], if I know that he’s concussed, and I know that he goes crazy when he’s not fighting or he’s at home or he goes through anxiety. If I’m Ilia Topuria, you guys know what I’m thinking? I’m thinking about calling this dude out and getting him to step up still on January 20th to have a better chance of actually beating him. You see, there’s times when you’ve gotta keep things to yourself. When you don’t keep things to yourself, you start to expose yourself” (h/t MMA Mania).

Henry Cejudo Urges Volkanovski to take him time

Despite the setback in Abu Dhabi, Volkanovski remains in talks to defend his featherweight title against No. 5 ranked contender Ilia Topuria at UFC 297 on January 20 in Toronto. That would give ‘The Great’ less than three months to prepare for what could very well be the toughest test of his reign as the 145-pound champion.

“If I’m Ilia Topuria on the flip side, you know what I’m thinking? I have to pick a fight with him,” Cejudo continued. “I have to get him to fight me on January 20th because the simple fact that he’s concussed. He’s concussed, it’s not the same Alexander Volkanovski that was out here finishing all these opponents … he’s not the same guy.

“If I’m Alexander Volkanovski on the flip side, you know what I’m doing? I gotta humble myself,” Cejudo said. “I gotta allow my brain to heal for the next six months. I’ve been concussed. Being concussed or going through a knockout, it takes you a minute for you to really kind of start walking that straight line. So there’s two sides. Volk, take your damn time. I wouldn’t necessarily be in a rush. You’re gonna have to humble yourself. Yeah, I’m saying humble yourself because it shouldn’t be about ego or pride. It should be about winning.”

The UFC is expected to make an announcement regarding UFC 297 in the coming weeks.

Israel Adesanya urged to take extended UFC break, encouraged to stop training during planned hiatus

Israel Adesanya urged to stop training during his hiatus from UFC by Henry CejudoConfirming plans for an extended hiatus from mixed martial arts competition following his middleweight title fight loss to Sean…

Israel Adesanya urged to stop training during his hiatus from UFC by Henry Cejudo

Confirming plans for an extended hiatus from mixed martial arts competition following his middleweight title fight loss to Sean Strickland last month, Israel Adesanya has been backed to do just that by ex-two-weight UFC champion, Henry Cejudo, claiming the City Kickboxing staple should likely stop training during his time away from the sport to boot.

Adesanya, former two-time undisputed middleweight champion, headlined UFC 293 back in September against the above-mentioend, Strickland, dropping his middleweight crown for the second time in the space of a year, in the form of a shocking upset unanimous decision loss to the Covina native.

And off the back of his loss, Nigerian-Kiwi striker, Adesanya confirmed his plans to take a lengthy hiatus away from the Octagon amid his loss to Strickland, as well as warning contenders of his impending comeback. 

“Now I’m gonna take time to look after myself,” Israel Adesanya told The Rock podcast during a recent appearance. “And, I’m not gonna fight for a long time. I’m definitely not gonna retire, ‘cause, you know me, I’m not leaving like that. But, if I did [retire], I’m fine. I don’t need to prove anything else. But, I know what I can do, I know what I can change in my lifestyle, to make my body adapt to where I need to be.”

Israel Adesanya backed to take time away from the UFC by Henry Cejudo

Sharing his thoughts on Adesanya’s plans for an extended period of time-off from competition, the above-mentioned Cejudo claimed the former should distance himself from the sport as much as possible during his hiatus.

“I wouldn’t even be around the sport, if I’m Israel Adesanya – you wanna get away from the sport,” Henry Cejudo said. “When I retired the first time, even though I was involved in coaching, I was never really doing anything that had do to with MMA physically. Do I believe he needs a break? One hundred percent. Do I believe he deserves it? Yeah. Do I believe when he comes back, will he get a title shot? Of course. Do you know why? Because you do it tactically – you want to be missed.”

“Israel Adesanya is taking the right step,” Cejudo explained. “But my biggest thing as somebody who took the time off, I got two questions for you. How long? And will you actually stay away from the sport rather than still train and be involved? To me, that could be the biggest difference on how is it that Israel Adesanya comes back and then eventually regains that middleweight strap once again.” (H/T MMA News)

Do you agree with Henry Cejudo’s thoughts on Israel Adesanya’s hiatus?

Israel Adesanya tipped to receive UFC title rematch with Sean Strickland next: ‘He’s Dana White’s boy’

Israel Adesanya touted as Dana White's boy will receive immediate UFC title rematchDespite continued speculation regarding an immediate championship rematch for Israel Adesanya following upset loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 last weekend, the City Kickboxing has nothing to fear for regarding his chances of fighting for gold again, with ex-two-weight champion, Henry Cejudo labelling him as “Dana White’s boy”. Headlining UFC 293 earlier this month […]

Israel Adesanya touted as Dana White's boy will receive immediate UFC title rematch

Despite continued speculation regarding an immediate championship rematch for Israel Adesanya following upset loss to Sean Strickland at UFC 293 last weekend, the City Kickboxing has nothing to fear for regarding his chances of fighting for gold again, with ex-two-weight champion, Henry Cejudo labelling him as “Dana White’s boy”.

Headlining UFC 293 earlier this month in Sydney, Australia, Adesanya dropped a one-sided unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 49-46) loss to Covina native, Strickland in the Octagon’s return ‘Down Under’, suffering his first official knockdown during his time under the promotion’s banner to boot.

And despite losing four of five rounds in a relatively comprehensive decision loss to Xtreme Couture, Strickland, Adesanya was immediately pegged as a potential candidate to challenge the newly-minted titleholder, Strickland – in the form of an immediate rematch.

Receiving falk for a potential booking of Adesanya opposite Strickland in another immediate championship re-run, UFC CEO, White has since claimed there are more options for the middleweight title’s future, than just a rematch.

Israel Adesanya touted as “Dana White’s boy” by ex-champion, Henry Cejudo

However, as far as Olympic gold medalist and former flyweight and bantamweight champion, Cejudo is concerned, Adesanya will likely to receive another title outing next, due to White’s apparent “love” for him.

“After losing four rounds to one, does he (Israel Adesanya) deserve a rematch now? No,” Henry Cejudo said on his YouTube channel. “Daniel Cormier doesn’t believe it, Chael Sonnen doesn’t believe it, the rest of the whole damn world doesn’t believe it. Will he get it? One hundred percent. When you’re Dana White’s boy, when you’re his cash cow, when you’re an entertainer and when you’ve done special things like Israel and you’ve been able to kind of grow the sport, Dana White will give you that opportunity.”

“My question is for you, Israel: is it smart for you to take a fight against a guy like Sean Strickland?” Henry Cejudo continued. “Is Sean Strickland the guy to come back after being dominated in a five round fight? I didn’t see that spark in him. It was a trip. It’s not like Sean Strickland even did anything special either. He fought him the way he fought everybody else, and he was able to win.” 

Does Israel Adesanya rematch Sean Strickland in his return to the UFC?