Back in 2020, Henry Cejudo announced his retirement after defeating Dominick Cruz in a bantamweight title defense. But as fate would have it for him, he made a return to the sport three years later. However, his comeback is not looking up, considering his trajectory so far. Only last year, he fought Aljamain Sterling for the 135 lbs title and came up short, and his quest to be a champion again continued.

Now, he has lost a second straight fight, this time against Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298. A win would have guaranteed him a title shot, but yet again, the former champion lost, this time via unanimous decision. His world championship aspirations were shattered and he walked out of the Octagon seemingly disheartened. So what’s in store for him next? As speculations of yet another retirement are making rounds, let’s dive in further and explore what we know so far.

Is it over for Henry Cejudo?

Henry Cejudo is indubitably one of the greatest fighters of the modern era. For him to lose two fights consecutively is quite a hard pill to swallow. After the fight, Cejudo walked out of the cage with a bruised face, holding his gloves in his hand. This gesture bears attention, as usually fighters remove their gloves in the cage to suggest that they are retiring from the sport. The former champion doing this could be an indication of the same. Regardless, there is no decisive information on this as of yet. That is because he did not leave it in the cage but rather took it with him. Even UFC CEO Dana White has an interesting insight into this.

When asked by a representative from MMA Junkie why Cejudo was not given an opportunity to speak with Joe Rogan in a post-fight interview, White disclosed how it was ‘Merab’s night.’ He further weighed in that Cejudo had already ‘retired’ before and that Dvalishvili deserved his spotlight after a dominant win.

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In White’s own words, “Henry Cejudo already retired. He did the whole ‘drop the gloves’ thing. Tonight was Merab’s night. Merab went in there and fought the number three guy in the world, former world champion. He won easily… If [Henry Cejudo] wants to retire again, he can do it here [at the press-conference] or someplace else. You don’t give the mic to Cejudo tonight.” 

Likewise, Cejudo himself did not explicitly state anything to the media about his retirement after the fight. Nonetheless, given the circumstances he is in, retirement is an option for him. What road does he go down to? Time will reveal. For all we know, that is what Dvalishvili thinks Cejudo might do after their bout.

Dvalishvili predicts a retirement for Cejudo

Before the fight, Dvalishvili asserted that Cejudo is a worthy contender for him, given that it’s probably his last chance to come back for a title run, and his urgency might make him a bigger threat. The likelihood of Cejudo becoming a champion post another defeat would be hard to envision. Thereupon, he claims that a defeat against him would in all probability force Cejudo to retire from the sport.

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In an interview before the fight, Dvalishvili conveyed, “If he [loses] against me, of course, he’s going to retire because it can take more time for him to come back. I think he’s talking from the facts. It’s either everything or nothing for him and that’s his mentality and that’s why he’s dangerous because I know he will try everything to win this fight and I’m sure he’s hungry.”

Now that he has been defeated, it appears Dvalishvili’s prediction might come true. Until then, we let you be the judge and ask you, do you think Cejudo will retire? Share with us your thoughts and opinions in the comments below.

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