Aljamain Sterling, Henry Cejudo Bout Targeted for May
The rumors about a potential super fight between UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling and former two-division champion Henry Cejudo have been circling for several months now. Despite various rumors, in an interview with The Schmo, the champion announced that he is looking to defend the belt against Cejudo in May.
“Triple Zero is next. 110%, he’s next,” Sterling said. “It’s not going to be April, though. After talking with my medical team and the doctors, we’re going to give myself a little bit more time. It’s going to be May.”
Quote via TheScore
At one point, the UFC was looking to have the pair fight at UFC 287 in April, but Sterling and Cejudo were not featured when the card was announced. Instead, the rematch between Alex Pereira and Israel Adesdanya will serve as the card’s headliner. Meanwhile, the co-main event will feature a welterweight bout between Gilbert Burns and Jorge Masvidal.
This announcement left questions as to what would happen between Sterling and Cejudo. Come to find out, the only consequence is that they will be fighting one month later than anticipated. All in all, that is not a bad outcome as it provides Sterling another month to heal from his bicep injury.
A bout between Sterling and Cejudo is one of the most impactful fights that the UFC can make at the moment. For Cejudo, he was on the verge of becoming one of the best fighters the sport had ever seen before surprisingly retiring from MMA at just 33 years old. After a three-year layoff, if he is able to come back and beat Sterling he greatly improve his legacy. At the same time, Sterling will be looking to add a legend to his resume and legitimize himself as an all-time great.
Sterling also discussed his future plan if he is able to beat Cejudo. Needless to say, Sterling could shake up the landscape of MMA if things go his way.
“After I finish Henry Cejudo, I really don’t think the bantamweight division has anything left for me,” Sterling said. “Maybe a money fight with Sean O’Malley if he can get his toenails in order and make sure he stays pretty on the sideline and healthy. … Maybe that fight might entice me, or I’m probably just going to go up to 145 (pounds) and let (teammate) Merab (Dvalishvili) continue to reign terror on the rest of these guys in the bantamweight division.”
Quote via TheScore
The UFC has yet to announce any information on what a May pay-per-view would look like. Based on the fact that UFC 287 is scheduled for April, it is safe to assume UFC 288 will take place in May. Outside of that, there are no concrete details. Regardless of the details, a pay-per-view main event between Sterling and Cejudo should have fans excited.
UPDATE:
Sterling and Cejudo have both announced that they have accepted the bout on social media. Each fighter made the announcement on their respective YouTube channel with Sterling’s announcement coming via FunkMasterMMA with Cejudo following on his channel, Henry Cejudo. According to Brett Okamoto of ESPN, contracts have not yet been signed, but it is expected that the bout will take place on May 6 at UFC 288.
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