Henry Cejudo has confirmed his next fight will be against one of the UFC’s fastest rising prospects – but will it be his last?
Legendary two-weight world champion Cejudo has been on a three-fight skid since returning to the octagon in 2023 following a 2020 retirement on top of the sport. As well as his UFC success, he is also an Olympic gold medalist after a record-breaking run at the 2008 games.
He most recently was forced to quit at UFC Seattle after suffering a gruesome eye injury against Song Yadong that left him fearing for his long-term health. After the fact, he told President Donald Trump and others that he believes his next fight will be his last.
- Who is Henry Cejudo? ‘Triple-C’ was an Olympic gold medalist and UFC double-champ
Henry Cejudo will face Payton Talbott at UFC 323 as both of his former belts put on the line
Dana White took to Instagram Live on Tuesday afternoon to tell fans about the upcoming UFC 323 card, which will be the final event of the ESPN era and potentially the final pay-per-view event ever for the promotion.
The show will be headlined by a bantamweight title rematch between Merab Dvalishvili and former champion Petr Yan in a bout that will see the Georgian break a record for most defences in a calendar year.
The co-main event will then see Alexandre Pantoja, the seemingly unbeatable flyweight champion, defend his belt against the rising star Joshua Van. However, the announcement that surprised fans was for the undercard.
Henry Cejudo, who has held both of the titles that are on the line, was booked to face 27-year-old prospect Payton Talbott. The young contender recently returned to winning ways after his first defeat, but faces a monster step up against the former two-division champion and Olympic gold medalist.
Henry Cejudo claimed his next fight would be his last
Immediately after his loss to Song Yadong, Cejudo seemed keen to get back in the cage and right what he felt was the wrong. However, as the severity of his injuries emerged, he seemed to pivot more into eyeing retirement, perhaps after just one more fight.
Most famously, he met with President Trump at the NCAA wrestling finals, where he was asked by Mr Trump how he was feeling and what his future plans were.
“I’m doing good Mr President.” When he was asked about future fights, he told the President: “I’ve got one more and I’m calling it.”