Henry Cejudo is confident he has what it takes to dethrone UFC featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski.
Unbeaten in the UFC, Volkanovski (23-1 MMA, 10-0 UFC) continued his reign over the 145-pound division this past Saturday when he battered Brian Ortega in a “Fight of the Night” effort to retain his title in the main event of UFC 266.
Immediately after the fight, Cejudo (16-2 MMA, 10-2 UFC) took the opportunity to call Volkanovski out yet again, but the champion didn’t appear to take him too seriously. However, the former UFC dual champion and Olympic gold medalist in wrestling appears more keen than ever to come out of retirement and is pleading with UFC president Dana White to make the fight happen.
“Alexander ‘The Average,’ this overgrown midget,” Cejudo told TMZ Sports. “This is the thing: It’s not even a challenge against this ugly face. It’s really a challenge against Dana White. How are you gonna doubt an Olympic champ, dude? Olympic champ, how are you gonna doubt a flyweight champ and a two-division champ in the UFC? It’s crazy. Anybody that would doubt me is freaking crazy. Let me go up, man.”
Volkanovski is on a remarkable 20-fight winning streak dating back to 2013 and few have had an answer for his pace and well-rounded game. While Cejudo was impressed with his performance against Ortega, he saw some weaknesses in Volkanovski’s game that he believes he can exploit.
A former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion, Cejudo wants a shot to become the first man in UFC history to win titles across three different divisions.
“Not only do I believe that I can beat him, I know I can stop him,” Cejudo said. “As much as I saw good things from Volkanovski, there are still a lot of holes. I believe my height would be a problem for him because he is a couple inches taller than me. My speed, my wrestling, my experience, I’ve been in there against the best. OK, Alexander ‘The Average’ had a great performance, it was a great fight, I just believe that I have the ‘it’ factor to beat this dude. Not only to beat this dude, but to stop him.
“Allow me to make history. If he’s that good, allow him to shut me up. Dana White, if you’re listening, this is a real message. Forget the cringe, forget the persona, this is straight up me. I am the greatest combat athlete of all time and I promise you, if you give me the opportunity, I will knock this dude out in no less than three rounds.”
Cejudo hasn’t competed since stopping former champion Dominick Cruz in May 2020. He isn’t exactly in peak shape, having ballooned up, which is why he thinks a return at featherweight would be best suited for him.
“I’m 165 pounds, believe it or not,” Cejudo said. “145 would fit me perfect. Again, if anybody doubts this mind, if you think I won the Olympics because I got lucky or two belts, hate the cringe, whatever the hell, I’m a freaking competitor, and I just want a challenge. I want a shot at legacy, and I want a shot to be the first UFC triple champ, to win three belts on top of my Olympic gold medal. That’s it.”
Henry Cejudo urges Dana White to give him ‘a shot at legacy’ against Alexander Volkanovski
