Former double champion Henry Cejudo hasn’t had the best comeback from retirement in the UFC. He came back in 2023 after a three-year hiatus but has failed to make his mark inside the Octagon, having failed to earn a single victory. Cejudo is currently 0-3 since making his return, so it’s hard to say what lies ahead in his UFC career. But in the meantime, ‘Triple C’ has his eyes set on a different competition.

UFC contracts can be very restrictive, and that’s been one of the issues that many fighters have brought up in the past. They may not be able to box or compete in other promotions, but one thing they can do is compete in wrestling and grappling tournaments. Amidst the uncertain nature of Henry Cejudo‘s UFC career, he has decided to take part in a tournament under Khabib Nurmagomedov’s wrestling league.

Henry Cejudo wants to compete against his ‘hero’ in Khabib Nurmagomedov’s promotion

The martial arts scene has become a really vibrant one over the past year or so. After grappling, it was time for amateur wrestling, and in the United States, Real American Freestyle is starting to make its mark. But on the other hand, Henry Cejudo reminded his co-host, Kamaru Usman, about what Khabib’s cooking, claiming that the incentive to compete is bigger on the other side of the world. “I potentially have a big matchup… You know, Khabib has started his own wrestling league, and I know them Russians in Abu Dhabi. They give big, big money,” Cejudo stated on the Pound 4 Pound podcast.

One of the reasons Henry Cejudo is excited is the fact that one of his Olympic idols will be competing in Khabib Nurmagomedov’s wrestling tournament. “There is one guy that they were talking about. He’s actually one of my heroes, bro. 2-time Olympic champion, world champion, Mavlet Batirov,” the former UFC champion added.

For those who don’t know, Mavlet Batirov is as big as Abdulrashid Sadulaev in Russia when it comes to freestyle wrestling. He has two Olympic gold medals to his name and has won numerous accolades from other wrestling competitions as well. Getting to compete against him will be nothing short of a bucket list moment for Henry Cejudo, as he added, “I do believe that if there’s any wrestling match that I’m going to take because I also don’t want to be getting attacked, bro… But Mavlet Batirov would be one of the matches that I’d truly entertain.”

Henry Cejudo has not retired yet from MMA, but intends to compete in other avenues as well. He may have thrown his name out there for Khabib Nurmagomedov to consider, but will he, though? ‘Triple C’ recently sparked a major debate after answering the question about who’s better, he or ‘The Eagle’. Here’s what he had to say.

Cejudo claims he’s better than Nurmagomedov

With 29 wins and no losses, Khabib Nurmagomedov is one of the few fighters who retired without losing the zero on his record, and lost just a couple of rounds in his entire MMA career. His name often pops up in the GOAT debate, although Jon Jones leads the race in the conversation. For Henry Cejudo, Khabib’s entry in the GOAT debate is not justified. Just like Dana White, he also believes that ‘The Eagle’ retired at a time when people wanted to see him continue his career, and because of that, he put his name above the Dagestan native.

“He has not done enough. I’ve told this to Khabib. I don’t want to fight with the dude, but I remember we had a really heated conversation between us. Because I don’t put Khabib in front of me. I really don’t,” Henry Cejudo said. “If Khabib would have went up a couple of weight classes, with what he’s done, then yeah, you would have to [rank him higher], in the fashion that he’s done it.”

Well, Khabib Nurmagomedov is not someone who likes to issue fiery responses to such statements regarding him. But it will be interesting to see if these comments make him sway away from inviting Henry Cejudo to compete in his wrestling tournament. Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.