Henry Cejudo confirmed his retirement from mixed martial arts on Saturday at UFC 323 in Las Vegas, where the former two weight champion ended his career with a unanimous decision defeat to Payton Talbott.
Cejudo, 38, had stated before the bout that it would be his final appearance, and he honoured that pledge after all three judges scored the contest 30–27 in Talbott’s favour. Speaking in the Octagon, he acknowledged the 27 year old bantamweight as a future contender and said he hoped to continue mentoring him, while admitting that his own competitive days are over.
Although the result was one sided on the scorecards, Cejudo delivered a determined showing against one of the division’s most highly regarded prospects. Talbott bloodied his face in the second round, targeted the body with sustained strikes and even secured multiple takedowns against the former Olympic champion. Cejudo continued to trade back, earning an appreciative response from the crowd.
The night also marked the end of another career, as Cejudo’s long time coach, Santino Defranco of Fight Ready MMA, announced his retirement from coaching.
Cejudo departs with one of the most accomplished résumés in the sport. An Olympic gold medallist in wrestling, he captured the UFC flyweight title in 2018 by edging Demetrious Johnson via split decision, then moved up later that year to claim the vacant bantamweight belt with a stoppage of Marlon Moraes. He defended the title against Dominick Cruz before first retiring in 2020, eventually returning in 2023 for a four fight run that ends here.
