As MMA continues to enter the mainstream, more and more UFC fighters are interacting with major Hollywood stars.
Sometimes, that leads to cool crossovers that nobody ever excpected. Other times, things can get a little awkward. You know, like when Conor McGregor almost fought rapper MGK at some award show a few years back.
One celebrity to recently cross paths with a UFC star was Matt Damon, who remains one of the busiest and most respected actors in the film industry.
The fighter Damon came into contact with was Henry Cejudo. Cejudo, as MMA fans know, is a former UFC bantamweight and flyweight champ. He’s also a former Olympic medalist in wrestling.
Despite Cejudo’s many accolades, Damon initially didn’t recognize him when they crossed paths. In fact, it sounds like he sized him up, then totally disregarded him because he’s “very small.”
It was only later that he realized who he was sharing space with.
Matt Damon looks back on meeting with former UFC champ Henry Cejudo
Damon recounted his brush with the former UFC champ during an appearance on The Joe Rogan Experience. A normal podcast episode in a studio, not on top of an Egyptian pyramid. See it below:
Matt Damon tells Henry Cejudo story. pic.twitter.com/b4c0rPlb0F
— Jed I. Goodman © (@jedigoodman) January 17, 2026
“This guy walks up and he’s in, like, chinos, like khaki pants, and like a blue button-up kind of business shirt with spectacles,” Damon told Rogan, who is a long-time UFC commentator. “He’s very small and I kind of don’t really regard him and I’m still hearing this story and then Patrick goes, ‘Matt, do you know Henry?’
“And I turn and it’s Henry Cejudo and I’m like, this f*cking guy could wreck me right now. Absolutely f*cking destroy me and he is the guy that some dummy would try to pick on, you know what I mean? He’s not carrying himself, he just is the thing.”
This is not the first time UFC fighters have failed to make impressions in mainstream circles recently. Brian Ortega and Mackenzie Dern recently appeared at the Golden Globes in a moment that left nearly everyone scratching their heads. Relive that discomfort here.