Henry Cejudo returns for just the third time since May 2020 looking to snap a two-fight losing skid. The former two-weight world champion and Olympic gold medalist will step into the main event against the up and coming, Song Yadong in what, if the result doesn’t go his way, could be his last octagon outing.
At 38, Cejudo has achieved it all in the sport of MMA. He became the first person to defeat Demetrious Johnson at flyweight, snapping his 14-fight winning run and avenging his first professional loss. He then went up in weight to capture the vacant bantamweight title before vacating both and retiring.
He made his return almost three years to the day after his retirement to clash with then-bantamweight champion, Aljamain Sterling, losing via split decision. Then he faced the current bantamweight king, Merab Dvalishvili over three rounds, getting dominated throughout.
Henry Cejudo – One Last Roll of the Dice
Set to headline his fourth UFC card (two PPVs and two Fight Nights), Henry Cejudo will, for the first time in a long time fight someone who isn’t in the title picture (yet). He’s faced a whos who of elite MMA competitors in the past and although Song Yadong is one of the best 135lbs fighters in the world, he’s yet to be truly considered in the title picture.
A loss to China’s Yadong will all but put out his chance at ever becoming champion again. At 38 and ranked #7, Henry Cejudo will give it one last roll of the dice on Saturday night. Despite being one of the most decorated (if not the, most decorated) wrestlers in UFC history, Cejudo’s takedown accuracy sits at just 32%, averaging 1.99 per 15 minutes. In his past two fights, he’s been the nail, rather than the hammer in terms of wrestling, being taken down nine times.
Yadong, on the other hand, had a higher takedown accuracy, however, lands far fewer takedowns, just 0.66 per 15 minutes, suggesting that he isn’t keen to take things to the ground. Understandably so. He’s got heavy hands, scoring nine knockout victories during his career, including three across his last four wins. Cejudo has mixed up his striking style throughout his UFC career, originally starting out fairly flat-footed and transitioning to far more karate-like style, with great effect.
How Does the Fight Play Out?
It’s a close one for sure. Song Yandong has only lost to the truly elite in recent times, dropping fights to Cory Sandhagen and Petr Yan last time out. He’s younger, arguably more hungry and continues to improve fight on fight.
Cejudo will be motivated coming into this one as he knows that a loss here will likely see him drop the gloves in the octagon and call time on a great career.
Yadong has never spent much time on his back, however, if Cejudo can get it down to the ground, he’ll likely have the edge down there.
Let’s go for the underdog, former champion, Henry Cejudo at +210 (at the time of writing) in this one.
Rest of the Card
The Climate Pledge Arena is treated to a good card this Saturday night.
The co-main event sees the return of Brendan Allen, who clashes with finishing machine, Anthony Hernandez. Allen is looking to bounce back from a loss to Nassourdine Imavov, whereas Fluffy is looking to extend his win streak to seven straight.
Elsewhere, the always-entertaining, Jean Silva meets Melsik Baghdasaryan. With six cancelled fights, this card has taken a huge hit since it was originally constructed. Undefeated Brazilian, Jean Matsumoto steps in to replace Dominick Cruz and clash with Rob Font. He will be looking to maintain his 16-0 record and break into the rankings. ‘Mr VanZant‘ Austin Vanderford makes his surprise UFC debut on short notice having gone 1-2 in his last three fights.
Whatever happens on the night, expect a solid fight night card in Seattle!