Henry Cejudo has accused bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling of ducking a fight against him in March.
Cejudo, a former flyweight and bantamweight champion, returned to the USADA testing pool in 2022 following his retirement from MMA in 2020. 'Triple C' has regularly maintained his desire to recapture both of his old titles as well as a potential stint in the featherweight division.
Standing in Cejudo's way for the 135lbs title is Aljamain Sterling. 'Funk Master' is in the best form of his career, successfully defending his title against Petr Yan and T.J. Dillashaw. The 33-year-old is also on an impressive eight-fight winning run and has stated he's more than willing to defend the belt for a third time against Cejudo.
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During the Legacy Fighting Alliance's (LFA) 149 broadcast earlier this week, Henry Cejudo sat down on commentary and confirmed that the UFC are working on booking him against Sterling for March. Cejudo also stated that he believes Sterling is trying to avoid a fight against him:
"I'm breaking this here at LFA. Aljizzlame is next. The only problem is he keeps ducking Triple C! He doesn't want the smoke. He's fat. He looks like Whoopie Goldberg! He absolutely makes me sick. He's dodging the Triple C and by the time I get to him he will bend the knee. The UFC is looking at March 5."
Catch Cejudo's comments here:
Henry Cejudo channels WWE's The Undertaker as he labels Aljamain Sterling a "gatekeeper" champion
Henry Cejudo spent much of last year taking shots at Aljamain Sterling, and his interview with Helen Yee earlier this week was no exception.
The self-proclaimed King of Cringe remained true to form during his interview with Yee as he channeled his inner Undertaker by rolling his eyes back into his head and sticking his tongue out, an iconic move by 'The Deadman'.
During the interview, 'Triple C' wasted no time by taking another jibe at Sterling. Henry Cejudo admitted that he was surprised 'Funk Master' is still the champ as he considers him a gatekeeper in the division:
"I'm a little surprised [that Sterling still holds the title]. I thought he'd be a gatekeeper but he happens to be champion now and there's something good that he's doing... I'm here to dismantle that. I think there's a lot of flaws in his game. As much as he does have some strengths, I think there's a lot of flaws and I see them and I think it's a great match-up for me."
Catch the full interview here: