Henry Cejudo reportedly set to make octagon return in bantamweight title fight against Aljamain Sterling, timeline revealed

The UFC is reportedly targeting a bantamweight title fight between Henry Cejudo and Aljamain Sterling for UFC 284 in February 2023 in Perth. Breaking the news, Ariel Helwani said during a recent episode of The MMA Hour:

"I'm hearing what the UFC wants. What the UFC wants right now is Aljamain Sterling vs. Henry Cejudo in Perth."

Watch Helwani's comments at the 13:30 mark of the video below:

Sterling recently defended his title against a compromised T.J. Dillashaw in the co-main event at UFC 280. 'Funk Master' earned a second-round TKO win after the former champ dislocated his shoulder in the opening frame.

In the post-fight media scrum, UFC president Dana White mentioned the possibility of Henry Cejudo fighting Sterling for the bantamweight title next. Helwani believes that White wouldn't mention Cejudo without 'Triple C' being involved in the mix as the UFC president is not one to throw names around.

This means uncertainty for Sean O'Malley, who picked up a controversial split-decision win over Petr Yan in what was billed as a No.1-contender bout.

---

Dana White explains his remark regarding Henry Cejudo fighting Aljamain Sterling

Dana White did not seem eager to book a title fight between Sean O'Malley and Aljamain Sterling when asked about 'Funk Master's' future at the UFC 280 presser. The UFC head honcho instead dropped Henry Cejudo's name out of the blue.

White went on to elaborate on his remarks later during the press conference. The UFC president seemed displeased with the reporter for dismissing Cejudo as a potential title contender.

White noted that the former UFC double champion has been in the USADA testing pool for over six months, making him eligible to fight. The 53-year-old told reporters:

“That guy was just in the top of my head, he asked me that question, I said maybe Henry Cejudo would be fun. He didn’t think so, but I don’t know, maybe other people do. You know, Henry’s been out there talking and he wants to come back and he wants to, you know, and I think ... how long has he been back in the USADA pool? Anyone know how long he’s been back in the USADA pool? Six months? Yeah, so you know, he could fight. So maybe you do him and Aljamain Sterling next.”

Watch White's comments at the 11:52 mark of the video below:

Cejudo also did his part by asking for a title shot in the immediate aftermath of UFC 280.

Responding to Cejudo's callout, Sterling slammed 'Triple C' for using the 'Jamaica vs. America' narrative to sell their potential meeting inside the octagon.