Henry Cejudo has been inspired to make his MMA return after the conclusion of UFC 273 last weekend.
Former two-weight champion Cejudo has pondered a return to the octagon for several months, but he finally announced his plans to re-enter the USADA testing pool ahead of a comeback. It comes after featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski and bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling both defended their titles at UFC 273, two weight classes that Cejudo is interested in fighting at.
In a message to Volkanovski after his win, Cejudo wrote: “You’ve inspired me to come back. When it comes to wrestling, you couldn’t pin a tweet. I would take you down and choke you out quicker than a [Conor] McGregor relapse. Sign the contract.”
Who should Henry Cejudo fight in his UFC return? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below
Cejudo's manager Ali Abdelaziz has confirmed his fighter's return, telling MMA Fighting : “Henry is one of the greatest fighters ever seen. I think the fans and all of us wanna see him come back. He is gonna focus on his fighting stuff, I’m gonna focus on the business side of things. I believe we will see him back end of the summer.”
Despite what Abdelaziz says, Cejudo will likely be unable to compete until October. Fighters who are re-entering the USADA testing pool are usually subjected to six months of drug testing before being able to compete again.
Former Olympic gold medalist Cejudo won the UFC flyweight title in 2018 by dethroning longtime champion Demetrious Johnson. After defending the belt against TJ Dllasahw, he moved up to bantamweight and won the vacant 135-pound title against Marlon Moraes.
Cejudo retired two years ago after defending his bantamweight belt against MMA veteran Dominick Cruz. Also on the 35-year-old's radar is a fight with Conor McGregor. Cejudo has been mocking McGregor's training footage in recent weeks, telling the UFC star: "I know you are scared to fight me but slow down buddy. I need you to get injured during the fight... not before."
McGregor is set to make his UFC return later this year having spent the best part of a year sidelined with a broken tibia. He has no interest in a fight with Cejudo and has targeted a comeback at welterweight, several weight classes above Cejudo's weight.
The Irishman told Cejudo: "Mate, I don't give two f**** about you. You are a nobody. Who the f*** even are you? You are a little skid mark to me, stop messaging me, thanks."
