It’s been nearly a year since Henry
Cejudo announced his retirement, but the former two-division
UFC champ continues to make headlines by teasing potential
matchups.
His latest focal point is former featherweight champion Max
Holloway. In a recent interview with
ESPN, the Olympic gold medalist explained why Holloway is
potentially an interesting opponent for him.
“I have never called out Max Holloway,” Cejudo said. “Even when he
had the belt, I have never called him out. I feel like in the
future, I would love to fight him. People would not believe me that
I could beat him. He’s so damn tall and what he’s been able to
do.
“I love that challenge. I love the fact people don’t think I could
beat him. He’s taller than me and has inflicted more damage on
different people, but I feel like I’m too smart and too
skilled.”
Cejudo is a former flyweight and bantamweight title holder in the
UFC. He called it a career in the Octagon after defending his
135-pound belt for a final time in a second-round TKO of Dominick
Cruz at UFC 249 in May 2020.
Cejudo has also called out reigning champion Alexander
Volkanovski in the past, but he’d like to see Holloway regain
the 145-pound belt to set up a matchup down the road. “Triple C”
believes he could navigate Holloway’s reach and rely on his fight
savvy were he to attempt to compete in a third weight class in the
Octagon. Holloway is coming off a dominant win over Calvin Kattar
in the UFC on ABC 1 main event in January.
“I think my IQ, I think my smartness [would be the difference],”
Cejudo said. “Of course, he has range. I would be the distance.
This is the thing, man: Watch my Dominick
Cruz fight. Look at how much taller he is than me and look at
how I was able to manage the distance, taking his legs out, the
timing portion of it. I think it’s just my IQ. … I personally feel
that there’s no doubt in my mind that I can beat him.
“I would love for Max Holloway to win that belt again. I would love
to go in there and fight him and to demonstrate to the world how
great ‘Triple C’ is. I don’t dare to be great. I am damn
great.”