Demetrious Johnson vs Henry Cejudo

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Demetrious Johnson	0	64 of 81	79%	172 of 212	8 of 8	100%	2	0	17:47
Ray Borg	0	13 of 29	44%	22 of 39	3 of 10	30%	0	0	2:08

Rd	Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
1	Demetrious Johnson	0	15 of 23	65%	36 of 47	1 of 1	100%	0	0	3:04
Ray Borg	0	1 of 8	12%	2 of 9	0 of 2	0%	0	0	0:10
2	Demetrious Johnson	0	11 of 11	100%	42 of 48	1 of 1	100%	0	0	3:35
Ray Borg	0	0 of 2	0%	2 of 5	2 of 2	100%	0	0	1:08
3	Demetrious Johnson	0	23 of 26	88%	46 of 51	1 of 1	100%	0	0	4:18
Ray Borg	0	4 of 7	57%	7 of 10	0 of 2	0%	0	0	0:12
4	Demetrious Johnson	0	9 of 13	69%	31 of 42	2 of 2	100%	0	0	4:01
Ray Borg	0	5 of 6	83%	7 of 8	1 of 2	50%	0	0	0:38
5	Demetrious Johnson	0	6 of 8	75%	17 of 24	3 of 3	100%	2	0	2:49
Ray Borg	0	3 of 6	50%	4 of 7	0 of 2	0%	0	0	0:00

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Demetrious Johnson	64 of 81	79%	24 of 34	34 of 37	6 of 10	16 of 28	10 of 11	38 of 42
Ray Borg	13 of 29	44%	8 of 21	4 of 6	1 of 2	7 of 21	5 of 7	1 of 1

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Demetrious Johnson	15 of 23	65%	7 of 12	3 of 3	5 of 8	9 of 17	0 of 0	6 of 6
Ray Borg	1 of 8	12%	1 of 7	0 of 0	0 of 1	1 of 8	0 of 0	0 of 0
2	Demetrious Johnson	11 of 11	100%	0 of 0	10 of 10	1 of 1	1 of 1	5 of 5	5 of 5
Ray Borg	0 of 2	0%	0 of 1	0 of 1	0 of 0	0 of 2	0 of 0	0 of 0
3	Demetrious Johnson	23 of 26	88%	10 of 12	13 of 14	0 of 0	4 of 6	0 of 0	19 of 20
Ray Borg	4 of 7	57%	3 of 5	0 of 1	1 of 1	2 of 4	1 of 2	1 of 1
4	Demetrious Johnson	9 of 13	69%	5 of 8	4 of 5	0 of 0	1 of 1	5 of 6	3 of 6
Ray Borg	5 of 6	83%	2 of 3	3 of 3	0 of 0	2 of 2	3 of 4	0 of 0
5	Demetrious Johnson	6 of 8	75%	2 of 2	4 of 5	0 of 1	1 of 3	0 of 0	5 of 5
Ray Borg	3 of 6	50%	2 of 5	1 of 1	0 of 0	2 of 5	1 of 1	0 of 0

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Demetrious Johnson	0	108 of 186	58%	135 of 216	1 of 2	50%	1	0	2:18
Wilson Reis	0	16 of 168	9%	18 of 170	0 of 6	0%	0	0	0:01

Rd	Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
1	Demetrious Johnson	0	25 of 56	44%	25 of 56	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:01
Wilson Reis	0	4 of 55	7%	5 of 56	0 of 2	0%	0	0	0:01
2	Demetrious Johnson	0	45 of 73	61%	55 of 83	0 of 1	0%	0	0	0:23
Wilson Reis	0	6 of 72	8%	7 of 73	0 of 2	0%	0	0	0:00
3	Demetrious Johnson	0	38 of 57	66%	55 of 77	1 of 1	100%	1	0	1:54
Wilson Reis	0	6 of 41	14%	6 of 41	0 of 2	0%	0	0	0:00

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Demetrious Johnson	108 of 186	58%	81 of 154	16 of 20	11 of 12	72 of 136	8 of 16	28 of 34
Wilson Reis	16 of 168	9%	2 of 139	2 of 14	12 of 15	16 of 167	0 of 1	0 of 0

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Demetrious Johnson	25 of 56	44%	14 of 43	4 of 6	7 of 7	22 of 48	3 of 8	0 of 0
Wilson Reis	4 of 55	7%	1 of 46	0 of 5	3 of 4	4 of 54	0 of 1	0 of 0
2	Demetrious Johnson	45 of 73	61%	34 of 59	8 of 10	3 of 4	29 of 51	4 of 7	12 of 15
Wilson Reis	6 of 72	8%	1 of 61	1 of 6	4 of 5	6 of 72	0 of 0	0 of 0
3	Demetrious Johnson	38 of 57	66%	33 of 52	4 of 4	1 of 1	21 of 37	1 of 1	16 of 19
Wilson Reis	6 of 41	14%	0 of 32	1 of 3	5 of 6	6 of 41	0 of 0	0 of 0

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Demetrious Johnson	0	28 of 58	48%	86 of 116	5 of 7	71%	3	1	16:36
Tim Elliott	0	24 of 61	39%	110 of 157	4 of 4	100%	2	0	3:38

Rd	Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
1	Demetrious Johnson	0	7 of 17	41%	9 of 19	2 of 3	66%	0	0	1:20
Tim Elliott	0	12 of 22	54%	23 of 35	1 of 1	100%	2	0	2:21
2	Demetrious Johnson	0	8 of 15	53%	19 of 26	1 of 1	100%	0	0	3:52
Tim Elliott	0	4 of 17	23%	25 of 40	1 of 1	100%	0	0	0:00
3	Demetrious Johnson	0	4 of 10	40%	20 of 26	1 of 1	100%	1	0	3:18
Tim Elliott	0	5 of 10	50%	27 of 37	1 of 1	100%	0	0	0:46
4	Demetrious Johnson	0	7 of 13	53%	29 of 35	1 of 1	100%	2	0	4:10
Tim Elliott	0	2 of 7	28%	22 of 28	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:00
5	Demetrious Johnson	0	2 of 3	66%	9 of 10	0 of 1	0%	0	1	3:56
Tim Elliott	0	1 of 5	20%	13 of 17	1 of 1	100%	0	0	0:31

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Demetrious Johnson	28 of 58	48%	16 of 39	4 of 7	8 of 12	15 of 39	4 of 8	9 of 11
Tim Elliott	24 of 61	39%	15 of 36	8 of 20	1 of 5	12 of 45	11 of 14	1 of 2

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Demetrious Johnson	7 of 17	41%	4 of 13	1 of 2	2 of 2	5 of 12	2 of 5	0 of 0
Tim Elliott	12 of 22	54%	8 of 15	4 of 6	0 of 1	4 of 11	8 of 10	0 of 1
2	Demetrious Johnson	8 of 15	53%	4 of 9	1 of 2	3 of 4	5 of 11	2 of 3	1 of 1
Tim Elliott	4 of 17	23%	2 of 11	1 of 5	1 of 1	3 of 16	1 of 1	0 of 0
3	Demetrious Johnson	4 of 10	40%	2 of 6	0 of 0	2 of 4	3 of 8	0 of 0	1 of 2
Tim Elliott	5 of 10	50%	4 of 5	1 of 4	0 of 1	2 of 6	2 of 3	1 of 1
4	Demetrious Johnson	7 of 13	53%	5 of 9	1 of 2	1 of 2	1 of 7	0 of 0	6 of 6
Tim Elliott	2 of 7	28%	1 of 4	1 of 3	0 of 0	2 of 7	0 of 0	0 of 0
5	Demetrious Johnson	2 of 3	66%	1 of 2	1 of 1	0 of 0	1 of 1	0 of 0	1 of 2
Tim Elliott	1 of 5	20%	0 of 1	1 of 2	0 of 2	1 of 5	0 of 0	0 of 0

UFC Flyweight Title Fight: Demetrious Johnson vs. Tim Elliott

Round 1
Referee Herb Dean is the third man in the cage for tonight's 125-pound title fight, with judges Sal D'Amato, Junichiro Kamijo and Jeff Mullen scoring at cageside. Johnson hits a quick takedown in the center of the cage and cartwheel-passes the guard into a nifty armbar attempt. Elliott rolls into top position and stacks up to free the arm, then starts putting some short punches on the champion's face. As "Mighty Mouse" rolls underneath and starts to work back to his feet, Elliott jumps guard with a guillotine. Johnson moves to free himself, and Elliott transitions to a brabo/D'arce choke. The choke looks very tight, but Johnson appears unconcerned and gives referee Dean a thumbs-up to show he's still awake. Elliott gives up on the choke, Johnson sweeps to top position, and suddenly it's the champ hunting for a guillotine choke. Elliott escapes the headlock and powers back to his feet, but the challenger is looking very tired now, leaning over to rest on his haunches. Elliott jams Johnson against the fence and throws a sequence of body punches, then a left hand to the chin which appears to drop Johnson. The champ springs back to his feet, only to be taken down by Elliott a few feet away from the fence. Elliott works from top position with 30 seconds left, now fishing for a topside guillotine. Elliott gives up the choke and grinds his elbow into Johnson's face for the final few seconds of the round.

Sherdog Scores
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Elliott
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Elliott
Mike Sloan scores the round 10-9 Elliott

Round 2
Elliott takes the center of the cage to start round two, while Johnson moves around the outside, dipping into range to pop the challenger with a few fast punches. Elliott backs up Johnson with a body kick, but Johnson bounces off the fence and changes levels, forcing Elliott to defend a takedown. Johnson plants his challenger at the base of the fence; Elliott rolls to his knees and Johnson tries to secure back-mount, then opts to work for a no-hooks rear-naked choke. Elliott slips free and puts his back on the ground, and Johnson winds up back in side control. Elliott kicks off the fence, trying to snare Johnson in a reverse triangle; Johnson stays compact in side control, bearing down on Elliott's chest, looking to set up a mounted crucifix. Elliott refuses to surrender his near arm, so Johnson leans across to the far side and works a kimura on the left arm. Johnson switches to a straight armbar, but it doesn't look like Elliott is in too much danger with the armlock. Elliott rolls to his knees, gets caught in a front headlock and drops to his back again. The sequence repeats, this time with Elliott powering back to his feet. Johnson stays glued to him, but Elliott snatches up a leg and completes a takedown, and it's the challenger who finishes the round on top.

Sherdog Scores
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Mike Sloan scores the round 10-9 Johnson

Round 3
Johnson charges inside and catches hold of Elliott, then pulls him to the ground. In a flash, the champion attaches himself to Elliott's back and goes hunting for a rear-naked choke. Johnson switches to a no-hooks RNC, but Elliott gets his chin underneath, bellies out and scrambles to top position. Johnson sits up and drives on a single-leg, absorbing some punches in the process, including a few which look to land to the back of the champion's head. Elliott eventually cedes the takedown, putting Johnson back on top in half guard with more than half the round remaining. Elliott takes some short punches to the face before he's able to adjust off the fence and put Johnson back in full guard. Elliott throws up a triangle, easily shucked aside by Johnson, who continues to maintain top position as they enter the final 80 seconds of the round. Johnson leans right to left across Elliott's body in side control, driving short elbows into the side of the challenger's head.

Sherdog Scores
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Mike Sloan scores the round 10-9 Johnson

Round 4
Johnson shoots a long single-leg shot but still manages to drive Elliott to the ground near the fence. A few seconds later, Mighty Mouse is in side control, dropping punches on the challenger's head. Johnson moves briefly to north-south position, then back to side control. Elliott sits up against the fence, and Johnson slips around to the back, where he threatens the challenger with another no-hooks rear-naked choke. Elliott grimaces but doesn't seem to be in danger of going to sleep, and after a tense couple of seconds, he peels away Johnson's grip. Johnson remains in side control with half the round left to fight, and now he traps Elliott in the mounted crucifix. Five or six speedy punches fall on Elliott's face before he's able to free himself from the dangerous position. Down to 90 seconds now, Elliott tries to sit up and escape, then has to lie flat on the canvas again when the champ threatens with another back-take. Johnson tries a kimura from cross-side control, wrenching Elliott's left arm behind his back, but Elliott won't tap. Johnson switches to an armbar, but Elliott escapes by grabbing hold of a leg and driving forward, somehow finishing the round on his feet.

Sherdog Scores
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Mike Sloan scores the round 10-9 Johnson

Round 5
Johnson lands yet another takedown in the opening minute of round five. Elliott sits up and nearly has his back taken before Johnson flattens him out on the mat again. Back to side control goes Johnson, who's having trouble mounting any offense with Elliott tangling him up from the bottom. Referee Dean calls for action as the champion hits his first prolonged stretch of inactivity. Two minutes remain in the bout, which seems all but sealed for Demetrious Johnson. The champ continues to work from Elliott's half guard, stretching out his left arm to work on another kimura or straight armbar attempt. Elliott reels the arm back in and now starts working for a kimura of his own from the bottom. Johnson goes to his knees to stack up, then transitions beautifully into an armbar attempt of his own. Elliott winds up on his back again, with Johnson in side control, hunting for an arm until the final horn.

Sherdog Scores
Brian Knapp scores the round 10-9 Johnson (49-46 Johnson)
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson (49-46 Johnson)
Mike Sloan scores the round 10-9 Johnson (49-46 Johnson)

The Official Result
Demetrious Johnson def. Tim Elliott via Unanimous Decision (49-45, 49-46, 49-46) R5 5:00

WIN vs Henry Cejudo

TKO (knees and punches) R1 2:49 · UFC 197: Jones vs. Saint Preux · Apr 23, 2016

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Demetrious Johnson	1	21 of 33	63%	35 of 47	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:17
Henry Cejudo	0	6 of 17	35%	8 of 19	1 of 1	100%	0	0	0:33

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
1	Demetrious Johnson	1	21 of 33	63%	35 of 47	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:17
1	Henry Cejudo	0	6 of 17	35%	8 of 19	1 of 1	100%	0	0	0:33

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Demetrious Johnson	21 of 33	63%	10 of 19	9 of 11	2 of 3	6 of 14	15 of 17	0 of 2
Henry Cejudo	6 of 17	35%	1 of 7	3 of 5	2 of 5	2 of 9	4 of 8	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Demetrious Johnson	21 of 33	63%	10 of 19	9 of 11	2 of 3	6 of 14	15 of 17	0 of 2
1	Henry Cejudo	6 of 17	35%	1 of 7	3 of 5	2 of 5	2 of 9	4 of 8	0 of 0

WIN vs John Dodson

Decision (unanimous) (49–46, 49–46, 50–45) R5 5:00 · UFC 191: Johnson vs. Dodson 2 · Sep 05, 2015

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Demetrious Johnson	0	88 of 171	51%	163 of 252	4 of 13	30%	0	0	4:59
John Dodson	0	58 of 121	47%	108 of 174	1 of 3	33%	0	0	2:55

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Ctrl
1	Demetrious Johnson	13 of 33	39%	15 of 35	0 of 3	0%	0:10
1	John Dodson	10 of 21	47%	17 of 28	0 of 0	---	0:09
2	Demetrious Johnson	17 of 35	48%	33 of 53	0 of 1	0%	0:30
2	John Dodson	13 of 29	44%	18 of 36	1 of 2	50%	1:06
3	Demetrious Johnson	19 of 30	63%	49 of 64	1 of 3	33%	2:12
3	John Dodson	7 of 12	58%	22 of 27	0 of 0	---	0:24
4	Demetrious Johnson	21 of 38	55%	39 of 56	1 of 3	33%	0:47
4	John Dodson	13 of 27	48%	18 of 33	0 of 1	0%	0:54
5	Demetrious Johnson	18 of 35	51%	27 of 44	2 of 3	66%	1:20
5	John Dodson	15 of 32	46%	33 of 50	0 of 0	---	0:22

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Demetrious Johnson	88 of 171	51%	57 of 125	23 of 36	8 of 10	64 of 135	24 of 36	0 of 0
John Dodson	58 of 121	47%	16 of 69	28 of 36	14 of 16	45 of 103	13 of 18	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Demetrious Johnson	13 of 33	39%	5 of 22	4 of 6	4 of 5	12 of 31	1 of 2	0 of 0
1	John Dodson	10 of 21	47%	0 of 9	6 of 8	4 of 4	7 of 17	3 of 4	0 of 0
2	Demetrious Johnson	17 of 35	48%	10 of 25	5 of 8	2 of 2	15 of 32	2 of 3	0 of 0
2	John Dodson	13 of 29	44%	4 of 17	7 of 9	2 of 3	11 of 26	2 of 3	0 of 0
3	Demetrious Johnson	19 of 30	63%	16 of 26	3 of 4	0 of 0	10 of 18	9 of 12	0 of 0
3	John Dodson	7 of 12	58%	2 of 6	4 of 5	1 of 1	4 of 8	3 of 4	0 of 0
4	Demetrious Johnson	21 of 38	55%	14 of 25	6 of 11	1 of 2	14 of 27	7 of 11	0 of 0
4	John Dodson	13 of 27	48%	5 of 17	6 of 8	2 of 2	9 of 22	4 of 5	0 of 0
5	Demetrious Johnson	18 of 35	51%	12 of 27	5 of 7	1 of 1	13 of 27	5 of 8	0 of 0
5	John Dodson	15 of 32	46%	5 of 20	5 of 6	5 of 6	14 of 30	1 of 2	0 of 0

WIN vs Kyoji Horiguchi

Submission (armbar) R5 4:59 · UFC 186: Johnson vs. Horiguchi · Apr 25, 2015

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Demetrious Johnson	0	66 of 121	54%	149 of 208	14 of 22	63%	1	0	13:43
Kyoji Horiguchi	0	31 of 91	34%	61 of 127	1 of 5	20%	0	0	1:02

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Ctrl
1	Demetrious Johnson	14 of 24	58%	24 of 34	1 of 3	33%	0	1:43
1	Kyoji Horiguchi	8 of 22	36%	10 of 24	0 of 0	---	0	0:01
2	Demetrious Johnson	13 of 34	38%	22 of 44	5 of 6	83%	0	2:37
2	Kyoji Horiguchi	7 of 23	30%	17 of 35	1 of 2	50%	0	0:35
3	Demetrious Johnson	10 of 19	52%	27 of 37	2 of 5	40%	0	3:13
3	Kyoji Horiguchi	7 of 15	46%	16 of 25	0 of 0	---	0	0:00
4	Demetrious Johnson	18 of 31	58%	30 of 44	1 of 3	33%	0	1:50
4	Kyoji Horiguchi	7 of 23	30%	9 of 25	0 of 3	0%	0	0:26
5	Demetrious Johnson	11 of 13	84%	46 of 49	5 of 5	100%	1	4:20
5	Kyoji Horiguchi	2 of 8	25%	9 of 18	0 of 0	---	0	0:00

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Demetrious Johnson	66 of 121	54%	21 of 56	31 of 40	14 of 25	39 of 86	16 of 23	11 of 12
Kyoji Horiguchi	31 of 91	34%	18 of 70	8 of 13	5 of 8	21 of 75	10 of 16	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Demetrious Johnson	14 of 24	58%	5 of 11	6 of 6	3 of 7	11 of 21	3 of 3	0 of 0
1	Kyoji Horiguchi	8 of 22	36%	2 of 13	4 of 7	2 of 2	8 of 22	0 of 0	0 of 0
2	Demetrious Johnson	13 of 34	38%	6 of 22	6 of 8	1 of 4	6 of 25	3 of 5	4 of 4
2	Kyoji Horiguchi	7 of 23	30%	6 of 21	1 of 1	0 of 1	5 of 19	2 of 4	0 of 0
3	Demetrious Johnson	10 of 19	52%	0 of 5	5 of 6	5 of 8	8 of 13	1 of 4	1 of 2
3	Kyoji Horiguchi	7 of 15	46%	3 of 9	2 of 2	2 of 4	3 of 11	4 of 4	0 of 0
4	Demetrious Johnson	18 of 31	58%	4 of 10	10 of 16	4 of 5	10 of 21	6 of 8	2 of 2
4	Kyoji Horiguchi	7 of 23	30%	5 of 19	1 of 3	1 of 1	4 of 17	3 of 6	0 of 0
5	Demetrious Johnson	11 of 13	84%	6 of 8	4 of 4	1 of 1	4 of 6	3 of 3	4 of 4
5	Kyoji Horiguchi	2 of 8	25%	2 of 8	0 of 0	0 of 0	1 of 6	1 of 2	0 of 0

Play-by-Play

View on Sherdog

UFC Flyweight Title Fight: Demetrious Johnson vs. Kyoji Horiguchi

Round 1
Canadian referee Yves Lavigne is the third man in the cage for tonight’s championship bout, with judges Richard Bertrand, Sal D’Amato and David Therien scoring at cageside. Horiguchi opens with a kick to the body, and Johnson switches stances a few times before settling in orthodox. Back to southpaw goes Johnson, landing a reaching right hand on the backpedaling challenger. Johnson lands a couple kicks on Horiguchi’s lead leg, then stumbles backward as he dodges a combination. Johnson catches a body kick and rushes Horiguchi against the fence, dropping levels to work an ankle pick. Horiguchi spreads out his base and stays standing, so Johnson comes back up to pin him on the cage with an underhook. Horiguchi raises a knee to defend body shots and soon escapes the clinch. Back to the center go the flyweights. Johnson closes the distance, moving Horiguchi toward the cage again, and lands a few speedy right hands upstairs before hitting a double-leg takedown. With 90 seconds remaining, Johnson has Horiguchi seated at the base of the fence, where he pops the challenger with a pair of shoulder shrugs to the face. Horiguchi stands and disengages with 55 seconds on the clock, then puts a hard kick on Johnson’s lead leg. Horiguchi leaps into range with a flying knee and sprawls as Johnson tries to hit another double.

Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Johnson
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson

Round 2
Johnson rushes Horiguchi to start round two, landing a flying knee behind a flurry of punches. Horiguchi retaliates with a burst of his own, a left hook touching the jaw of “Mighty Mouse” before Horiguchi finishes with a clean jump knee. Horiguchi puts Johnson on the fence, reaps a leg and trips him to the ground. The challenger tries to wrap up Johnson’s legs but can’t keep him down. Johnson stands and gets socked in the face with a left hand before Horiguchi sprints away. Horiguchi cuts angles on the outside now, ducking under a punch but succumbing to a body lock takedown behind it. Johnson tries to pull out Horiguchi’s legs and pass to mount, but Horiguchi finds the space to stand up. Johnson keeps him near the fence for a few seconds until he can change levels for another takedown with 2:00 on the clock. Horiguchi posts and stands, taking a knee to the chest along the way. The flyweights dash to the other side of the cage, where Johnson scores another easy takedown. Again, Horiguchi is able to stand up, and the 125ers move back to the center. They only stay there for a few seconds, then it’s another takedown from “Mighty Mouse” up against the fence. Johnson stands to drive a knee into Horiguchi’s chest, allowing the Japanese fighter to stand as well. Horiguchi catches a body kick but can’t capitalize, as Johnson catches him with an overhand right on the other side and scores one more takedown to close out the round.

Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Johnson
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson

Round 3
Johnson ducks a punch, slips around the back to wrap up Horiguchi and then releases. The champ shoots for a long takedown against the fence and gets sprawled on, and Horiguchi circles off the fence one minute into the round. Johnson catches up with him a few seconds later and gets the takedown he wanted. Horiguchi sits up at the fence, then stands and tries to pry away Johnson’s hands. Horiguchi breaks free and catches Johnson chasing after him with a looping left hand on the ear. Halfway through the round now, Johnson tags Horiguchi with a punching combination, drops levels and grounds him with a takedown a few feet from the fence. Horiguchi holds Johnson in half guard, pushes him back to full guard, but Johnson jumps right over to side control with 90 seconds on the clock. Johnson seems to be thinking about a kimura on the far side, can’t trap the arm and instead socks Horiguchi in the face with a couple short punches. Johnson gets a mounted crucifix with 30 seconds to go and drops some peppering left hands on Horiguchi’s head to end the round.

Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Johnson
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson

Round 4
Johnson opens the championship rounds with a kick to Horiguchi’s midsection, and the challenger comes back with a right hand over the top. Horiguchi sprawls on a shot, catches a kick from Johnson but can’t capitalize. Johnson closes the distance and grabs a standing rear-waist lock, then moves to the front as Horiguchi puts his back against the fence. They break from the clinch, Johnson comes back grabbing for a single, but Horiguchi defends. The next takedown attempt from Johnson lands, but Horiguchi is quickly back on his feet, jogging back to the center. A low kick from Johnson takes out the lead leg of Horiguchi, who stands a split second before Johnson can catch up to him. Johnson slips under a punch to grab another single-leg, but this time Horiguchi stands and reverses to push the champ against the fence. The flyweights disengage, Horiguchi now bleeding from his nose. Horiguchi swings into range with a noticeably slower right hand, tries to hold Johnson on the fence but cannot. Horiguchi finishes the round leaping at Johnson with a knee and gets cut off by a body kick.

Sherdog Scores
Jordan Breen scores the round 10-9 Johnson
TJ De Santis scores the round 10-9 Johnson
Chris Nelson scores the round 10-9 Johnson

Round 5
Johnson hits a quick takedown in the middle of the cage, then passes to side control as Horiguchi tries an ineffective rubber guard. Horiguchi throws up leg scissors, but it’s only a few seconds before Johnson pops his head free and passes completely to the challenger’s right side. Horiguchi tries to twist around and put Johnson in guard but winds up on his belly, then on his knees as the flyweights work over to the fence. Johnson tries to take the back, so Horiguchi stands up, and now they’re back in the middle with 3:30 on the clock. Johnson grabs a leg and scores another easy takedown straight to side control. Johnson tries the kimura again, loses it and tries to take Horiguchi’s back as they stand. Horiguchi dashes away, but once again Johnson catches up to him and drags him to the mat. Horiguchi is breathing heavy, sitting up against a cage post as Johnson controls his legs. Johnson flattens him out and moves to side control on Horiguchi’s left, then tries to take his back when the challenger sits up. The cage blocks Johnson’s progress, so he stands up and drills Horiguchi with a knee to the chest. Horiguchi stands with under one minute remaining and walks forward on Johnson, who dumps him to the ground one last time. Johnson gets a crucifix from side control and starts dropping unfettered right hands. With seconds remaining, Johnson switches to an armbar, extends Horiguchi’s right arm all the way and coaxes a tap just before the final horn sounds.

The Official Result
Demetrious Johnson def. Kyoji Horiguchi via Submission (Armbar) R5 4:59

WIN vs Chris Cariaso

Submission (kimura) R2 2:29 · UFC 178: Johnson vs. Cariaso · Sep 27, 2014

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Demetrious Johnson	0	27 of 43	62%	47 of 66	1 of 1	100%	2	0	4:42
Chris Cariaso	0	6 of 27	22%	13 of 35	0 of 1	0%	0	0	0:03

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Ctrl
1	Demetrious Johnson	19 of 30	63%	30 of 42	1 of 1	100%	0	2:52
1	Chris Cariaso	5 of 21	23%	10 of 26	0 of 1	0%	0	0:03
2	Demetrious Johnson	8 of 13	61%	17 of 24	0 of 0	---	2	1:50
2	Chris Cariaso	1 of 6	16%	3 of 9	0 of 0	---	0	0:00

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Demetrious Johnson	27 of 43	62%	12 of 24	13 of 15	2 of 4	7 of 18	10 of 11	10 of 14
Chris Cariaso	6 of 27	22%	1 of 19	2 of 3	3 of 5	4 of 25	2 of 2	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Demetrious Johnson	19 of 30	63%	5 of 12	12 of 14	2 of 4	7 of 14	10 of 11	2 of 5
1	Chris Cariaso	5 of 21	23%	1 of 16	2 of 2	2 of 3	3 of 19	2 of 2	0 of 0
2	Demetrious Johnson	8 of 13	61%	7 of 12	1 of 1	0 of 0	0 of 4	0 of 0	8 of 9
2	Chris Cariaso	1 of 6	16%	0 of 3	0 of 1	1 of 2	1 of 6	0 of 0	0 of 0

View all 22 fights

Henry Cejudo - Fight History

LOSS vs Payton Talbott

Decision R3 5:00 · UFC 323 · Dec 06, 2025

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Henry Cejudo	0	60 of 116	51%	77 of 136	1 of 7	14%	0	0	2:39
Payton Talbott	1	134 of 217	61%	156 of 240	3 of 5	60%	0	0	3:31

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Ctrl
1	Henry Cejudo	0	22 of 44	50%	26 of 49	0 of 2	0%	0:00
1	Payton Talbott	0	40 of 57	70%	50 of 67	2 of 2	100%	1:37
2	Henry Cejudo	0	18 of 38	47%	30 of 52	1 of 1	100%	2:13
2	Payton Talbott	1	50 of 88	56%	57 of 95	1 of 1	100%	0:36
3	Henry Cejudo	0	20 of 34	58%	21 of 35	0 of 4	0%	0:26
3	Payton Talbott	0	44 of 72	61%	49 of 78	0 of 2	0%	1:18

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Henry Cejudo	60 of 116	51%	33 of 83	10 of 12	17 of 21	51 of 104	7 of 10	2 of 2
Payton Talbott	134 of 217	61%	89 of 167	34 of 39	11 of 11	90 of 168	28 of 31	16 of 18

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Henry Cejudo	22 of 44	50%	11 of 28	1 of 2	10 of 14	18 of 39	2 of 3	2 of 2
1	Payton Talbott	40 of 57	70%	28 of 45	7 of 7	5 of 5	29 of 46	4 of 4	7 of 7
2	Henry Cejudo	18 of 38	47%	11 of 30	3 of 4	4 of 4	16 of 34	2 of 4	0 of 0
2	Payton Talbott	50 of 88	56%	35 of 69	13 of 17	2 of 2	29 of 62	12 of 15	9 of 11
3	Henry Cejudo	20 of 34	58%	11 of 25	6 of 6	3 of 3	17 of 31	3 of 3	0 of 0
3	Payton Talbott	44 of 72	61%	26 of 53	14 of 15	4 of 4	32 of 60	12 of 12	0 of 0

Angelo Bodetti Expert Confident picked Nov 30, 2025 (6 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Angelo picks Payton Talbott, acknowledging Henry Cejudo's Olympic wrestling credentials but believing Cejudo is too old and past his prime. He notes that Talbott is much larger, athletic, and has improved his wrestling since the Hani Barcelos fight. Angelo expects Talbott to use his size and speed to overwhelm Cejudo, despite his personal admiration for Cejudo.

"Payton Talbot's the pick."

We Want Picks

Big Brady Expert Confident picked Nov 26, 2025 (10 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Big Brady picks Payton Talbott, noting Cejudo's retirement talk, lack of recent wins, and decline. He highlights Talbott's improvements in takedown defense and scrambling after the Barcelos fight. He expects Talbott to win by third-round knockout.

Talbott by third round knockout

"I'm going to take Payton Tabata to make a statement and get some of the hype he once lost and get that back and then some with the big performance here. Give me Payton Tabata to win by third round …"

DFS by the Numbers

Cody Saftic Expert Hesitant picked Dec 3, 2025 (3 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Cody is hesitant but picks Talbott, noting that Cejudo's recent fights show he doesn't wrestle enough. He points out that Cejudo's takedown attempts have declined and he relies on striking, where Talbott has a reach advantage. He mentions that Talbott's wrestling looked improved against Felipe Lima. He is tempted by Cejudo's dog odds but doesn't trust him to wrestle.

"If I could trust Henry Cejudo to come out here and make this a wrestling match, I'd be all about Henry Cejudo at like plus 215. The problem is like he doesn't really want to do that anymore."

Bookie Beatdown

Connor Ruebusch Expert Confident picked Dec 4, 2025 (2 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Connor picks Talbott, arguing that Cejudo doesn't want to wrestle and will likely revert to his preferred striking. He notes that Talbott has shown improvement in defensive wrestling since the Barcelos fight, and his pressure-volume style is effective. Connor believes Cejudo can hit takedowns but doubts his ability to stick with a wrestling-heavy game plan, especially at 38. He sees Talbott as a younger, more dynamic striker who understands pace and pressure.

Odds: Cejudo opened +210, now +215; Talbott opened -250, now -255.

"I'm not picking him to win. I mean, I expect him to try, but it's just not what he wants. Even if he tries, can you do it sustainably?"

MMA Vivisection

Daniel Vreeland Expert Confident picked Nov 27, 2025 (9 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Daniel picks Talbott, citing Cejudo's age (38), size disadvantage (5'4 vs 5'10), and decline since retirement. He expects Cejudo to have early success but fade, while Talbott's power and athleticism will take over. He notes Talbott's learning from his first loss and improved confidence.

"I'm going to go Payton Talba to come out here and overcome some stuff early and then Cejudo is going to start to gas out and I think Pton Talba's going to put a beating on Triple C."

Half the Battle

Lucrative James Expert Confident picked Nov 29, 2025 (7 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Lucrative James believes Henry Cejudo is not fully committed to MMA, citing his content creation and retirement talk. He thinks Talbott's relentless pressure and body work will wear down Cejudo, especially in rounds 2 and 3. He notes Talbott's presence and striking flow are exceptional and predicts a round 3 stoppage or decision win.

"Payton Talba is going to go out there and break Henry Ceudo in my opinion."

Lucrative MMA

MMA Lock of the Night Expert Confident picked Dec 5, 2025 (1 day before fight)

Payton Talbott

The host expects the fight to be more competitive than the -255 odds suggest but still picks Talbott to land more effective damage and do enough defensive grappling to keep Cejudo from grinding. He predicts a decision win for Talbott.

win by decision; odds comment: minus 255 on Talbet

"I'm expecting this fight to be much more competitive than the minus 255 on Talbet indicates... Talba comes out on top by decision."

MMA Lock of the Night

Paul Shaughnessy Expert Confident picked Dec 3, 2025 (3 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Paul picks Talbott, echoing Cody's concerns about Cejudo's wrestling. He notes that Cejudo's best wins came against older or smaller opponents and that he hasn't knocked anyone out since 2020. He believes Talbott's length and accuracy will cause problems for Cejudo, who is reluctant to shoot takedowns. He thinks Talbott wins by decision or TKO.

"I think Payton Taba wins this fight as well. Yeah, wrestling with uh with Frank Oceans, one of the best bases for MMA, I've heard."

Bookie Beatdown

The MMA Guru Expert Confident picked Dec 3, 2025 (3 days before fight)

Henry Cejudo

The Guru picks Henry Cejudo as a +230 underdog over Payton Talbott. He believes Talbott is being pushed too fast and Cejudo's experience and chin will be too much. The Guru predicts a 29-28 decision win for Cejudo.

plus 230 underdog

"I'm going with Sudo over Payton Tabet by 2928 decision."

THE MMA GURU

Zane Simon Expert Confident picked Dec 4, 2025 (2 days before fight)

Payton Talbott

Zane agrees with Connor, noting that Cejudo's career shows a reluctance to wrestle unless forced. He points out that Talbott's game is built on pressure and volume, similar to Colby Covington's approach, but with actual striking talent. Zane believes Talbott will come in improved after the Lima fight, where he showed better defensive wrestling. He thinks Cejudo's takedowns will be less effective as the fight goes on, and Talbott's pace will overwhelm him.

Same odds commentary as Connor.

"Yes, we're both picking Talbott."

MMA Vivisection

LOSS vs Song Yadong

Decision R3 5:00 · UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Song · Feb 22, 2025

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Henry Cejudo	0	67 of 133	50%	67 of 133	0 of 3	0%	0	0	0:00
Song Yadong	0	84 of 178	47%	84 of 178	0 of 1	0%	0	0	0:00

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Ctrl
1	Henry Cejudo	13 of 25	52%	13 of 25	0 of 1	0%	0:00
1	Song Yadong	21 of 31	67%	21 of 31	0 of 0	---	0:00
2	Henry Cejudo	29 of 55	52%	29 of 55	0 of 2	0%	0:00
2	Song Yadong	33 of 69	47%	33 of 69	0 of 1	0%	0:00
3	Henry Cejudo	25 of 53	47%	25 of 53	0 of 0	---	0:00
3	Song Yadong	30 of 78	38%	30 of 78	0 of 0	---	0:00

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Henry Cejudo	67 of 133	50%	40 of 100	12 of 18	15 of 15	67 of 132	0 of 1	0 of 0
Song Yadong	84 of 178	47%	46 of 133	14 of 21	24 of 24	82 of 176	2 of 2	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Henry Cejudo	13 of 25	52%	3 of 13	3 of 5	7 of 7	13 of 25	0 of 0	0 of 0
1	Song Yadong	21 of 31	67%	6 of 16	5 of 5	10 of 10	19 of 29	2 of 2	0 of 0
2	Henry Cejudo	29 of 55	52%	18 of 42	3 of 5	8 of 8	29 of 54	0 of 1	0 of 0
2	Song Yadong	33 of 69	47%	17 of 49	5 of 9	11 of 11	33 of 69	0 of 0	0 of 0
3	Henry Cejudo	25 of 53	47%	19 of 45	6 of 8	0 of 0	25 of 53	0 of 0	0 of 0
3	Song Yadong	30 of 78	38%	23 of 68	4 of 7	3 of 3	30 of 78	0 of 0	0 of 0

Play-by-Play

View on Sherdog

Henry Cejudo vs. Yadong Song

Round 1
His back against the wall, former two-division champ Cejudo (16-4, 10-4 UFC) finds himself on a rare losing streak, albeit to two of the best bantamweights in the world in Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili. The Olympic gold medalist takes a slight step down in competition to face Song (21-8-1, 1 NC; 10-3-1 UFC), who also lost his last fight against a champ-level fighter in Petr Yan. The 135ers are brought to the center of the cage by referee Jason Herzog, and they acknowledge one another and double bump their gloves together. It’s on with the show. Cejudo pump-fakes his hips several times to give the impression of a looming takedown, and Song does not bite on a single one and fires off a heavy low kick. Cejudo rushes forward with a one-two that misses the mark, and he races forward and catches Song at the end of an exchange. Song bounces off the cage and gets back to kicking the wrestler in the lead leg and little else. Song sits down on a counter, but Cejudo is in and out with a body kick before that happens. Cejudo fakes a takedown to come up overt the top with a left hook, and after that fails, he motions low for a level change and attack with a flying knee. Cejudo lets fly a low kick and gets jabbed in the belly for his handiwork. Song uses his range to potshot from afar with jabs, low kicks and reaching left hooks. Cejudo fakes his way in but does not engage in anything other than a low kick of his own, and as Song backs off, Cejudo kicks him in the side. Chants of “USA” rain down in support of the wrestler, and Song takes advantage of the energy by clipping the American with a right hand and further flusters him with low kicks. The two drill one another with low kicks, and Song’s ankle bends awkwardly as he tries to put pressure on it. Cejudo keeps kicking the calf, and he shoots low and comes out swinging high. Song rips a kick to the side, and he nearly splits the guard with an uppercut. Both fighters blitz and pull back before letting things go, and Song sits down on a right hand. When Cejudo kicks the body of his foe, Song cracks him with another right hand. Cejudo is fired up and swings back with a vengeance, and he chases Song around until the bell sounds.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Song
Devin Tejada scores the round: 10-9 Song
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Song

Round 2
The fighters high-five to get started again, and then pull back without trading. Song eventually works his way forward, chipping away with kicks to the body. Cejudo surges forward with two hooks, and his low kick is all that lands from it. Song darts back and works the body, and Cejudo says something to him and strikes. Song swipes out with a left hook, and leg kicks fly from both sides. Song splits the guard with a double jab, and his naked leg kick is nearly countered with a right up top. Song backs off the former champ with a few long punches, and he puts a few right hands down the pipe and goes to the body after. Cejudo waves him on, and he comes up top with a right hand when faking a takedown. Cejudo goes after a takedown, and Song shrugs it off and triples up on his jab. They whip kicks at one another, and Cejudo times a solid left. A jumping switch kick from Cejudo lands to the side, and he drops down in pursuit of a takedown. Song’s sprawl shuts it down, and he fires off kicks to the lead leg. One skims the cup, but Cejudo motions that he does not want to pause. As Song keeps kicking, he falls over, and Cejudo charges at him and then backs off. Song allows Cejudo to come in so he can belt him in the face with a pair of hooks, and he trips Cejudo up with his leg kicks and forces a stance switch. Song jabs and jabs, following a few with right hands and beating the elder statesman to the punch. Song gets a right hand in and escapes, only for Cejudo get his hands on him with a fierce right. Song staggers back and is ready to engage, as if he needs to take damage to get out of first gear. Song suddenly drops down for a single, and Cejudo tosses it aside and scores a right hand. The former champion lands another overhand right, and Song clips him with an uppercut. Song stands his man up with a left, and Cejudo wants to bang it out and does just that. A few right hands from “The Messenger” bloody up Song’s nose, and the round ends.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo
Devin Tejada scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo

Round 3
Song wants to pay Cejudo back right out of the gate, surging forward throwing punches. Cejudo stands in the pocket ready for battle, and he fakes his takedown every so often to further open things up on the feet. Song never bites, and instead stands Cejudo up with his sharper punches. The punches from Cejudo open a cut on Song’s cheek, and Song blocks a jump knee and pushes Cejudo aside. The two trade one after the other, not concerned about power and willingly engaging. Cejudo blocks a few punches to throw back, but it is Song’s one-two that gets through. When Cejudo lashes out, Song pushes off with a front kick that lands on the cup. Herzog asks replay to check if this is a direct foul, and after 30 seconds, they get back to it. Cejudo ducks a few jabs and swings hard, and again drops down for a level change only to swing up high. This results in a furious brawl, with Cejudo right there in front of the fighter from China swinging hard. Song jumps at his man with a knee, and Cejudo blocks it just in time. Song knocks Cejudo back during an exchange and grins, and he slaps a kick low and backs off when Cejudo hurls a left hook at him. Cejudo sneaks in a clean right hand to get Song’s attention, and Song pays him back with a clubbing right. Song pushes off with his fingers outstretched, and his fingers jam into both of Cejudo’s eyes like a Three Stooges poke. Herzog pauses the action and tells Song to be careful, and Cejudo asks for a cloth to wipe his eyes while telling Herzog to take a point. Cejudo wipes his eyes out with a wet towel, taking ample time to recover while blinking his eyes repeatedly to clear his vision. Cejudo declares to Herzog that he wants to fight and needs to take the time to see better, and he sits down. The crowd showers him with boos, and Cejudo tells the audience to cool it because he was the recipient of a nasty foul. Cejudo uses the complete five-minute break to clear up, and when they resume, Song still holds his fingers out towards his opponent. Song walks Cejudo down and busts him in the chops, clipping him with a solid uppercut when Cejudo is circling away. Song backs Cejudo against the fence, trying to cut him off and aim long strikes at him like front kicks and jabs. Cejudo ducks back to defend from further uppercuts, and he dodges a jump knee to get to the end of the round. Cejudo complains to his corner that he cannot see, and Herzog is paying close attention to this. Cejudo asks the promotion to call in the doctor, and that he cannot see out of his left eye.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Song
Devin Tejada scores the round: 10-9 Song
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Song

Round 4
Herzog allows the third round to complete, and he goes to start the fourth round and calls time, officially bringing in the doctor and waving the fight off. This means that the fighters will be going to a technical decision, and everyone in the building is disappointed. The first three rounds will be scored in their entirety, and a rematch is almost certainly in the cards for these two. After such a terrific start to the event, it is unfortunate for the night to end like this. Both fighters are game to run it back. When they do, we will be here for it. We hope you are too.

The Official Result
Yadong Song def. Henry Cejudo via Unanimous Technical Decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)

Angelo Bodetti Expert Confident picked Feb 16, 2025 (6 days before fight)

Song Yadong

Angelo picks Song Yadong despite being a huge Henry Cejudo fan. He notes Cejudo is 38 and hasn't won since 2020, while Song is young, fast, and a clean striker. He thinks Song will look better as the fight goes longer. He will not bet on the fight because he will be rooting for Cejudo and never bets on someone he doesn't think will win.

No bet due to rooting interest

"I think Song wins this fight... I'll be rooting for Henry Cejudo, I want him to win, but I don't think he's going to get it done."

We Want Picks

Big Brady Expert Confident picked Feb 17, 2025 (5 days before fight)

Song Yadong

Big Brady picks Song Yadong, noting that Henry Cejudo is 38 years old and may not be taking his career seriously, citing an interview where Cejudo was smoking. He believes Song's takedown defense and get-up game have improved significantly since the Stamann fight, and that Song is 11 years younger with a height advantage. He expects Song to win a clear one-sided decision, with Cejudo maybe getting a takedown here or there but being outworked.

by decision

"give me S Yong I I'll say s Yong wins this fight a pretty pretty clear one-sided decision"

DFS by the Numbers

Connor Ruebusch Expert Hesitant picked Feb 20, 2025 (2 days before fight)

Song Yadong

Connor picks Song Yadong but is hesitant, noting that if the fight were three rounds he would pick Cejudo. He acknowledges Cejudo's ability to take Song down early and grind, but doubts Cejudo can maintain pace or finish Song. Connor points out that Cejudo's speed may not shock a young fighter like Song, and that Song is very tough to finish.

"if this were a three round fight I would probably pick henry sauto to win it... but it's five rounds and song yadong is younger and harder hitting"

MMA Vivisection

MMA Lock of the Night Expert Confident picked Feb 20, 2025 (2 days before fight)

Song Yadong

The host thinks Song's striking style will be too much for Cejudo, who may make the fight closer than odds indicate. He believes the damage Song inflicts will lead to a decision victory.

"I think that song's striking style will end up being too much for shudo here shudo might have some success to make this fight look closer than the odds indicate I still believe that the damage that song will be …"

MMA Lock of the Night

The MMA Guru Expert Confident picked Feb 21, 2025 (1 day before fight)

Song Yadong

The Guru picks Song Yadong by decision, arguing he is more athletic, faster, and has better footwork. He doubts Cejudo's takedown effectiveness, noting he hasn't seen a good takedown from him in years and that opponents often get back up. He believes Song's defensive grappling is strong and that he will outpoint Cejudo on the feet over five rounds, predicting a 48-47 score.

decision win

"I'm gonna go with s Yong I'm gonna go with son Yong and I'm gonna say that song wins this fight by decision three rounds to two four rounds to one"

THE MMA GURU

Zane Simon Expert Confident picked Feb 20, 2025 (2 days before fight)

Song Yadong

Zane picks Song Yadong because he believes Cejudo is too old and knockout-dependent, and Song is younger, harder hitting, and more durable. He notes that Cejudo's last decision win was a robbery over Demetrious Johnson and that he slows down in later rounds. However, Zane expresses disappointment that Song likely won't show any new skills, as he expects a win that teaches nothing new.

"I have to pick song yadong, but the unfortunate truth is it's probably i'm expecting a win where I learn literally nothing new about him"

MMA Vivisection

LOSS vs Merab Dvalishvili

Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) R3 5:00 · UFC 298: Volkanovski vs. Topuria · Feb 17, 2024

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Merab Dvalishvili	0	74 of 172	43%	167 of 273	5 of 11	45%	1	0	4:23
Henry Cejudo	0	29 of 78	37%	54 of 106	1 of 7	14%	0	0	2:05

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Ctrl
1	Merab Dvalishvili	16 of 32	50%	42 of 59	1 of 2	50%	0	0:13
1	Henry Cejudo	11 of 20	55%	36 of 48	0 of 0	---	0	1:53
2	Merab Dvalishvili	34 of 78	43%	49 of 94	2 of 4	50%	1	1:46
2	Henry Cejudo	9 of 29	31%	9 of 29	1 of 5	20%	0	0:12
3	Merab Dvalishvili	24 of 62	38%	76 of 120	2 of 5	40%	0	2:24
3	Henry Cejudo	9 of 29	31%	9 of 29	0 of 2	0%	0	0:00

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Merab Dvalishvili	74 of 172	43%	44 of 128	20 of 34	10 of 10	51 of 134	13 of 24	10 of 14
Henry Cejudo	29 of 78	37%	13 of 54	5 of 11	11 of 13	24 of 68	5 of 10	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Merab Dvalishvili	16 of 32	50%	9 of 22	4 of 7	3 of 3	9 of 23	6 of 8	1 of 1
1	Henry Cejudo	11 of 20	55%	4 of 13	3 of 3	4 of 4	9 of 18	2 of 2	0 of 0
2	Merab Dvalishvili	34 of 78	43%	22 of 61	9 of 14	3 of 3	27 of 64	1 of 6	6 of 8
2	Henry Cejudo	9 of 29	31%	6 of 22	2 of 5	1 of 2	6 of 24	3 of 5	0 of 0
3	Merab Dvalishvili	24 of 62	38%	13 of 45	7 of 13	4 of 4	15 of 47	6 of 10	3 of 5
3	Henry Cejudo	9 of 29	31%	3 of 19	0 of 3	6 of 7	9 of 26	0 of 3	0 of 0

Angelo Bodetti Expert Confident picked Feb 11, 2024 (6 days before fight)

Merab Dvalishvili

Angelo picks Merab Dvalishvili, citing his insane conditioning and relentless chain wrestling. He notes Henry Cejudo gave up four takedowns to Aljamain Sterling and expects Merab to take him down repeatedly. He is rooting for Cejudo but believes Merab's style is the worst matchup for him in the division.

"morab is going to be the pick I will be rooting big time for Henry cejudo here but you got to go morab"

We Want Picks

Big Brady Expert Confident picked Feb 13, 2024 (4 days before fight)

Merab Dvalishvili

Big Brady picks Merab Dvalishvili to win by decision. He praises Merab's relentless pace and volume, referencing his record 49 takedown attempts against Petr Yan. He believes Cejudo, at 37 and coming off a layoff, will struggle to keep up. He compares it to the Jose Aldo fight where Merab lost all takedowns but still won via pressure and cage control. He expects a similar outcome here.

Merab by decision

"I'm taking Mor Rob here I'm taking Mor Rob by decision"

DFS by the Numbers

Cody Saftic Expert Lean picked Feb 14, 2024 (3 days before fight)

Henry Cejudo

Cody leans toward Cejudo as an underdog, thinking his Olympic-level wrestling could neutralize Merab's takedown-heavy game. He notes that Cejudo is a natural flyweight and may not be outsized by Merab. He questions whether Merab's wrestling will be effective against a gold medalist. He sees value in Cejudo at plus money.

"I have interest in the underdog Henry cejudo um just because I think he obviously being a Olympic champion in wrestling can maybe thwart uh Mor's best path to Victory which is nonstop attacking takedowns."

Bookie Beatdown

Daniel Vreeland Expert Confident picked Feb 13, 2024 (4 days before fight)

Merab Dvalishvili

Daniel Vreeland picks Merab Dvalishvili, emphasizing his youth, cardio, and relentless pace. He notes Merab's 49 takedown attempts against Petr Yan and his ability to outwork opponents. He questions Cejudo's motivation and training situation, suggesting he is not in the same shape as during his championship run. He believes Merab's pressure and volume will fatigue Cejudo and lead to a decision win.

"I think Merab is going to win too... I think he gets it done here."

Half the Battle

MMA Lock of the Night Expert Confident picked Feb 15, 2024 (2 days before fight)

Merab Dvalishvili

Dvalishvili's high cardio, pace, and output overwhelm opponents, forcing mistakes. Cejudo has technical advantages but his prime is past. Expects Dvalishvili to win by decision.

"give me deales fi by decision"

MMA Lock of the Night

Paul Shaughnessy Expert Confident picked Feb 14, 2024 (3 days before fight)

Merab Dvalishvili

Paul picks Merab, citing his non-stop pressure and takedown volume. He notes that Merab's wrestling is his staple, and even if he doesn't hold Cejudo down, the constant takedown attempts will wear on Cejudo. He references Merab's win over Petr Yan, where he attempted 49 takedowns, and his ability to out-strike Aldo without any takedowns. He believes Merab's cardio and pace will be too much for Cejudo.

"yeah man because that ability to just keep going the non-stop pressure in the action so I I think that that eventually grinds away as audo and uh gives him a points Victory."

Bookie Beatdown

The MMA Guru Expert Confident picked Feb 13, 2024 (4 days before fight)

Merab Dvalishvili

The MMA Guru picks Merab Dvalishvili, citing his size advantage, cardio, and pressure. He notes Cejudo's inactivity and overthinking in the Aljamain Sterling fight. He believes Merab's grappling and pace will annoy Cejudo, even if Cejudo gets back up. He mentions a conspiracy about Cejudo firing his coach, but ultimately trusts Merab's momentum.

"I'm going with Merab... Morab's got not that bad standup... monstrous cardio and you're giving him a size and mass advantage over Cejudo."

THE MMA GURU

LOSS vs Aljamain Sterling

Decision (split) (47–48, 48–47, 48–47) R5 5:00 · UFC 288: Sterling vs. Cejudo · May 06, 2023

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Aljamain Sterling	0	135 of 210	64%	186 of 261	4 of 15	26%	0	0	4:00
Henry Cejudo	0	99 of 174	56%	143 of 219	3 of 8	37%	0	0	5:06

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Ctrl
1	Aljamain Sterling	20 of 34	58%	29 of 43	2 of 3	66%	1:37
1	Henry Cejudo	7 of 18	38%	15 of 26	1 of 1	100%	1:47
2	Aljamain Sterling	29 of 55	52%	29 of 55	0 of 2	0%	0:00
2	Henry Cejudo	31 of 53	58%	31 of 53	0 of 2	0%	0:02
3	Aljamain Sterling	26 of 29	89%	45 of 48	1 of 6	16%	1:30
3	Henry Cejudo	15 of 29	51%	38 of 53	1 of 1	100%	1:43
4	Aljamain Sterling	36 of 52	69%	52 of 68	1 of 3	33%	0:38
4	Henry Cejudo	19 of 33	57%	24 of 38	0 of 2	0%	0:46
5	Aljamain Sterling	24 of 40	60%	31 of 47	0 of 1	0%	0:15
5	Henry Cejudo	27 of 41	65%	35 of 49	1 of 2	50%	0:48

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Aljamain Sterling	135 of 210	64%	51 of 112	50 of 60	34 of 38	103 of 174	24 of 28	8 of 8
Henry Cejudo	99 of 174	56%	35 of 99	30 of 37	34 of 38	82 of 152	16 of 21	1 of 1

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Aljamain Sterling	20 of 34	58%	5 of 15	10 of 12	5 of 7	12 of 25	3 of 4	5 of 5
1	Henry Cejudo	7 of 18	38%	3 of 13	1 of 1	3 of 4	7 of 16	0 of 2	0 of 0
2	Aljamain Sterling	29 of 55	52%	10 of 33	11 of 14	8 of 8	28 of 53	1 of 2	0 of 0
2	Henry Cejudo	31 of 53	58%	10 of 26	7 of 11	14 of 16	29 of 51	2 of 2	0 of 0
3	Aljamain Sterling	26 of 29	89%	12 of 15	11 of 11	3 of 3	17 of 20	7 of 7	2 of 2
3	Henry Cejudo	15 of 29	51%	7 of 19	5 of 6	3 of 4	10 of 23	4 of 5	1 of 1
4	Aljamain Sterling	36 of 52	69%	11 of 25	13 of 14	12 of 13	27 of 42	8 of 9	1 of 1
4	Henry Cejudo	19 of 33	57%	7 of 20	5 of 6	7 of 7	16 of 30	3 of 3	0 of 0
5	Aljamain Sterling	24 of 40	60%	13 of 24	5 of 9	6 of 7	19 of 34	5 of 6	0 of 0
5	Henry Cejudo	27 of 41	65%	8 of 21	12 of 13	7 of 7	20 of 32	7 of 9	0 of 0

Play-by-Play

View on Sherdog

UFC Bantamweight Title Fight: Aljamain Sterling vs. Henry Cejudo
BETTING PREVIEW | SCOUTING REPORT | ODDS: Cejudo (-115), Sterling (-105)

Round 1
This one is for all the marbles, and a fair amount of divisional glory as well. Sterling (22-3, 14-3 UFC) will be trying to set the UFC bantamweight record by notching his third successful title defense, while Cejudo (16-2, 10-2 UFC) would like nothing more than to get his old belt back. The winner of this pairing will elevate themselves in the all-time rankings at bantamweight, and they will have 25 minutes to figure it out. Like the legion of fans in the Prudential Center, referee Herb Dean is excited for how this one will play out. The fighters share a stern glove touch, and let the games begin. Sterling comes out aggressively, and he leads the dance with an early head kick. They clash shins at the same time, and Sterling recovers and kicks the leg. Cejudo ignores a few low kicks and backs away when Sterling leaps at him with a flying knee. Cejudo dodges a body kick, and he counters with a right hand. Sterling stalks him down and reaches out with a swatting right up high and left to the body. Cejudo tries to catch leg, and he elects to snatch up a body lock and easily take the champ to the mat. Sterling sits up against the wall, and Cejudo holds on in half guard until Sterling sets up butterfly hooks. Cejudo drops down to grab hold of a guillotine choke with Sterling on his knees, and Sterling breaks the grip but is holding Sterling’s head down. Sterling explodes to his feet, and he eats a leg kick and a right hand on the way. Sterling loads up with a body kick, and Cejudo catches it and whiffs with a huge right hand. Sterling snipes him with his superior range, and Cejudo pushes forward into a clinch. Sterling considers a level change, and Cejudo staves it off and again presses on the back of Sterling’s neck to keep him low. They stand up, and Sterling hunts for a single-leg with Cejudo against the cage. The crowd opens up with chants for “Henry” despite Sterling the fighter from the area, and Sterling manages to take that energy and muscle the ex-champ down to his knees. Sterling cannot keep him down or take his back, and he slams a few knees to the side before Cejudo stands. Sterling hits a mat return, and he snatches up back control and gets one hook in. Cejudo looks to break up the leg wrap, and Sterling knees his man in the thigh a few times and swings with a huge punch right before the bell sounds.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Sterling
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Sterling
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Sterling

Round 2
Cejudo starts off the second frame with a calf kick, and Sterling greets him with sharp jab and a body kick. Sterling jumps with a switch kick that lands on the shoulder, and Cejudo is still trying to find his distance. Cejudo connects with a calf kick, and Sterling shoots in on him. Sterling shoulder rolls a few punches, and he sticks Cejudo with a straight left. They trade low kicks, and Sterling catches a kick only to get caught with an uppercut to let it go. Cejudo presses the action and shocks Sterling with a head kick, and the champion reels and reaches out with a right hook. Sterling pushes out a front kick, turns to dodge a head kick, and he intercepts Cejudo with a knee to the guts. Sterling surprises his foe with a left hook when faking with a front kick, and he throws kicks to all targets to fluster the ex-flyweight. Sterling shoots in for a takedown, and Cejudo stops it in its tracks with ease. Sterling gets in a left hand, and when Cejudo counters, Sterling is there to catch him with a strike and be out of harm’s way in time. Cejudo puts some mustard into an overhand right, and Sterling jukes and keeps moving. “Funk Master” retains his awkward movement and strange angles, and this allows him to take most of the steam out of the heavy strikes Cejudo throws. Cejudo backs his man up with a straight right to the pectorals, and Sterling spins him around with a calf kick. Cejudo walks into a left hand, and he tries to hop forward with a hook only to get backed off. Sterling quickly spins with an elbow, and Cejudo looks for answers and loads up on a power right. When Sterling ducks away, Cejudo nearly dislodges his dome with a head kick. Sterling slides away and gets a straight left out, and he keeps a high guard to blow what comes back immediately. Sterling digs a punch to the body, and Cejudo replies with a few punches up top. Sterling kicks the side, and Cejudo looks for a takedown only to get shut down. Cejudo wings a monster right hand, and Sterling brushes past it and looks to trip Cejudo down. The wild scramble allows Cejudo to land on top, but the round ends before anything comes from it.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Sterling
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Sterling
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Sterling

Round 3
Cejudo practically comes out sprinting from his corner, and the two engage in a series of leg kicks. Cejudo breaks this up with one to the ribcage, and Sterling ducks down with a jab. Cejudo times a perfect flying knee that skims off the top of the head, and Sterling drops down to shoot in for a takedown. Cejudo sprawls perfectly and is pushed down to the floor, with no submission or anything from Cejudo. “The Messenger” lets him back up, and Sterling thanks him with a big right hand. Sterling shoots for another takedown, and this time, Cejudo makes him pay for this try with a stern knee. Sterling pursues another from a different angle, and Cejudo defends it and turns his foe around to push him to the fence. Sterling gets off a short knee while they jockey for position, and Sterling trips out a leg and drops Cejudo to the floor. Sterling sneaks his right leg in for a potential hook, and Cejudo hangs onto Sterling’s left arm but cannot keep the gold medalist grounded. Sterling lets him up so that he can smash Cejudo in the face with a clean knee, and he aims one more to the body. Sterling looks for another takedown entry, and Cejudo tosses him out of the way. Sterling lands a left, and Cejudo replies with a right and sprawls to stop a naked takedown. Cejudo nearly circles around to the side, and Sterling answers by switching up for a single. Cejudo keeps his chest pressed on the back of Sterling’s head to stop the takedown from getting anywhere, and he hammers Sterling with a punch before waving Sterling back up. Sterling obliges and they trade body kicks. Sterling fires off a one-two into a level change, and Cejudo stops it but absorbs a pair of flush knees to the torso. Cejudo hits a trip, plopping Sterling on his back with seconds to spare, and he rides out the remainder of the round in the guard.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Sterling
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo

Round 4
The championship rounds are upon them, and Sterling scores a few low kicks to start them off. Sterling swings a left hand, and Cejudo answers with a leg kick. The champ measures a kick to the side, and he loads up with another. Cejudo tries to fire back a low kick, and Sterling strikes the same spot and then has one calf kick checked. Cejudo blocks one and lunges forward, with a right hand connecting before Sterling is able to escape. Sterling sits down on a leg kick, and he follows with a right hand. Cejudo steps in with a knee and two punches, and these two are striking tit-for-tat one after the other. Sterling stings the calf with a shin, prompting Cejudo to charge at him with his fists out to clinch up. Cejudo cannot keep him tied up, and he tosses him away and catches a kick to release a left hand over the top. Sterling sticks out a jab and fails for a takedown, and he nails the calf with another kick. Sterling snaps the head back courtesy of a sharp jab, and Cejudo walks through a kick on his calf to consider a takedown. Sterling breaks free and aims a punch high and a kick low. Cejudo fakes a takedown and walks Sterling down to smack him with a shovel uppercut, and Sterling knees him in the liver. Cejudo grabs the raised leg but cannot elevate him, and Sterling turns the corner and knees his foe in the body. Cejudo whips Sterling around and uses a head lock to drag Sterling to the mat. Sterling pushes through to attack a double, and Cejudo does a whole split but cannot stop Sterling from taking him down. Sterling laces up the leg and lands a few right hands, and Cejudo bursts back up and gets slugged in the chops before the horn blares.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Sterling
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Sterling
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Sterling

Round 5
Sterling points at the ground and says “Let’s go” to start off the last round, and the bantamweights meet in the middle of the cage for five more minutes of combat. Cejudo charges, ignoring a leg kick and launching one up high off the shoulder. Sterling slaps another calf kick to the swollen leg of his opponent, and Cejudo blocks one to his liver to follow. Sterling circles on the outside to avoid the looping strikes of his opponent, and Cejudo steps in with a solid body kick. Sterling gives two right back, and he whiffs on a big right hand. Cejudo charges recklessly, face-first into a right hand, but he pays it no mind as he strikes the side with his shin. Cejudo is pressuring aggressively, and Sterling backs him away with a few punches and a high kick. Cejudo scores a right hand as he comes in, and the fans rain down cheers for “Henry” again. Sterling spins with a back kick as Cejudo is kicking low, breaking up this attack. Cejudo stuns the champ with a left hand, and Sterling blinks it out and fights off a single. Cejudo lets it go and cracks Sterling with a right hand and follows it with a leg kick. Sterling reaches out with a right that misses the mark, and he boots the liver as Cejudo takes a look at the clock. Sterling slips a punch and sticks a straight left out, and Cejudo absorbs a calf kick and stuffs a takedown. Cejudo knees the body a few times and looks to follow it with an uppercut, and Sterling rolls with a punch and gets tied up. Sterling backs away from the advancing Cejudo, who grabs hold of a single and lifts Sterling’s leg in the air. Sterling topples down to his seat, but he powers right back up to his feet with Cejudo holding on from behind. Sterling tries to break the grip, and he spins around to get tied up. Cejudo lets go with clinch punches and knees, and the fight has reached its conclusion. It might go either way, possibly depending on the scoring of the second round. In victory, Sterling becomes the first bantamweight champion in UFC history to record three consecutive title defenses. One of the most underappreciated champs in the company is received by a series of boos, but Sterling lets it slide off like water off a duck’s back.
The defending champ calls out Sean O’Malley for his next challenge, and O’Malley enters the cage wearing a jacket reminiscent of “Thriller” by Michael Jackson. O’Malley steps right up to Sterling’s face and constantly repeats the line “you better do better than that.” UFC head Dana White gets between them, and Sterling calls for O’Malley to be removed from his cage. O’Malley approaches Sterling’s teammate, Merab Dvalishvili, who grabs his jacket, puts it on himself and runs away. Sterling is ready to go help out his teammate should a skirmish break out, with O’Malley hurling expletives and middle fingers until his red coat is returned. The security prevents anything bad from arising, and Sterling takes the mic again and tells O’Malley that they will fight in September. After this cools down, Cejudo is given the microphone, and he removes his gloves. Cejudo expresses his disappointment for the close fight, but holds no ill will towards the man that defeated him. Quoting “Talladega Nights,” Cejudo states that “If I’m not first, I’m last” and says this might be the last time he competes. If he fights again, we will be here for it. We hope you are too.

Sherdog Scores
Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo (49-46 Sterling)
Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo (48-47 Sterling)
Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Cejudo (48-47 Sterling)

The Official Result
Aljamain Sterling def. Henry Cejudo via Split Decision (47-48, 48-47, 48-47)

Angelo Bodetti Expert Confident picked Apr 30, 2023 (6 days before fight)

Aljamain Sterling

Angelo picks Aljamain Sterling despite acknowledging asterisks on his title wins (illegal knee, split decision, TJ Dillashaw with one arm). He believes Sterling's size and activity will be decisive, as Sterling is a weight bully and has been fighting consistently while Cejudo returns after three years. Angelo is rooting for Cejudo but thinks the layoff and cardio questions are too much to overcome. He notes Cejudo's Olympic wrestling credentials but doubts he can take down the much larger Sterling.

"I have to go with the current champion who is more active who is much larger I have to go with Al Jermaine Sterling here"

We Want Picks

Big Brady Expert Hesitant picked May 1, 2023 (5 days before fight)

Aljamain Sterling

Big Brady picks Sterling due to activity, youth, volume, and size advantages. He notes Cejudo's three-year layoff is a major concern, especially at lower weight classes. He acknowledges that if prime Cejudo shows up, he should win, but he's not confident in that. He mentions Sterling's reach and height advantages and that Sterling is in his prime training with Merab Dvalishvili. He says this is his least confident pick on the card and he's likely not betting it.

Least confident pick on the card; likely not betting this fight

"I'm gonna go with Sterling here in this matchup but if we do get Prime sahudo he should win this fight I'm just not sure if we will get that so give me Sterling to win this fight I'll say …"

DFS by the Numbers

Cody Saftic Expert Hesitant picked May 3, 2023 (3 days before fight)

Aljamain Sterling

Cody acknowledges the massive question marks around Henry Cejudo's three-year layoff and whether he can replicate his past success. He gives Sterling advantages in speed, striking, grappling, and recent experience, but notes that Cejudo's constant pressure could exploit Sterling's tendency to fade in later rounds. He suggests playing Sterling live after the first round for a better price rather than betting pre-fight, and only as a small play if nothing else on the card jumps out.

Live betting after first round; only small play on top line

"I just feel like for this price on algeman Sterling I would have to play now not something I'm super confident in I would only put it on the top line just like last week's rookie Simone pick"

Bookie Beatdown

Connor Ruebusch Expert Lean picked May 4, 2023 (2 days before fight)

Henry Cejudo

Connor leans toward Cejudo, citing raw speed as a major factor and noting that Cejudo is the fastest fighter Sterling has faced since Marlon Moraes. He believes Cejudo's pressure and willingness to take risks will be effective, and that Cejudo will land the bigger shots. Connor acknowledges the age and ring rust concerns but is willing to take that flyer.

"So I think I'm going to lean Henry Sahutto here. I'm going to take the age flyer. I'm going to take the time off flyer."

MMA Vivisection

MMA Lock of the Night Expert Confident picked May 1, 2023 (5 days before fight)

Henry Cejudo

The host believes Henry Cejudo's speed, explosiveness, and defensive grappling will be too much for Aljamain Sterling. He notes that Cejudo is difficult to take down and control, and his calf kicks and power punching could be key. He expects Cejudo to win by knockout in the third or fourth round, assuming he hasn't regressed too much from the layoff.

Cejudo by knockout, round 3 or 4

"I think that suhuru hasn't you know regressed too much after being out of the cage for as long as he has but if he comes by even 90 of what he used to be I think he has a …"

MMA Lock of the Night

Paul Shaughnessy Expert Lean picked May 3, 2023 (3 days before fight)

Aljamain Sterling

Paul agrees with Cody's reasoning, noting that while Cejudo could return like Jon Jones or GSP, the three-year layoff is a major unknown. He highlights Sterling's seven-inch reach advantage and massive speed advantage from training with Rob Font. He says it's 'algermane or pass' for him but doesn't feel he has an edge betting-wise, so he likely won't place a bet.

"it's it's algermane or pass for me right now but I don't know if I'm going to get to get to it from a betting perspective"

Bookie Beatdown

The MMA Guru Expert Lean picked May 1, 2023 (5 days before fight)

Aljamain Sterling

The Guru leans toward Sterling, citing Cejudo's three-year layoff and age (36) as major factors. He believes Sterling's reach and height advantages will allow him to pick at Cejudo from range with front kicks and jabs. He also notes that Cejudo's wrestling may be neutralized by Sterling's body triangle, which can burn rounds. However, he admits it's a 50-50 fight and hopes Cejudo wins for entertainment, showing low confidence.

"aljo's gonna win it's a 50-50 fight I'm leaning towards Al Jermaine Sterling here"

THE MMA GURU

Zane Simon Expert Confident picked May 4, 2023 (2 days before fight)

Aljamain Sterling

Zane picks Sterling, noting that he always starts strong with a clear game plan and is underrated for his toughness and resilience. He highlights Sterling's high output, body work, and weapons like knees and uppercuts to counter shorter fighters. Zane acknowledges the risk of Sterling getting caught or fading late, but believes Sterling's grappling danger and ability to take Cejudo's back are key advantages.

"Yeah, I'm going to stick with Alderman Sterling. I mean, I think if I assume ring rest to be a factor at all, all I know is Alderman Sterling always starts."

MMA Vivisection

WIN vs Dominick Cruz

TKO (knee and punches) R2 4:58 · UFC 249: Ferguson vs. Gaethje · May 09, 2020

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Henry Cejudo	1	53 of 83	63%	56 of 86	1 of 5	20%	0	0	0:14
Dominick Cruz	0	33 of 81	40%	33 of 81	0 of 4	0%	0	0	0:00

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Ctrl
1	Henry Cejudo	0	19 of 29	65%	21 of 31	1 of 2	50%	0:08
1	Dominick Cruz	0	14 of 29	48%	14 of 29	0 of 3	0%	0:00
2	Henry Cejudo	1	34 of 54	62%	35 of 55	0 of 3	0%	0:06
2	Dominick Cruz	0	19 of 52	36%	19 of 52	0 of 1	0%	0:00

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Henry Cejudo	53 of 83	63%	24 of 50	6 of 8	23 of 25	44 of 70	0 of 2	9 of 11
Dominick Cruz	33 of 81	40%	15 of 58	8 of 11	10 of 12	31 of 78	2 of 3	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Henry Cejudo	19 of 29	65%	3 of 10	2 of 3	14 of 16	18 of 28	0 of 0	1 of 1
1	Dominick Cruz	14 of 29	48%	4 of 16	6 of 7	4 of 6	14 of 29	0 of 0	0 of 0
2	Henry Cejudo	34 of 54	62%	21 of 40	4 of 5	9 of 9	26 of 42	0 of 2	8 of 10
2	Dominick Cruz	19 of 52	36%	11 of 42	2 of 4	6 of 6	17 of 49	2 of 3	0 of 0

Big Brady Expert Confident picked Apr 30, 2020 (9 days before fight)

Dominick Cruz

Big Brady picks Dominick Cruz as an underdog, citing his movement, speed, volume, and takedown defense. He believes Cruz can outpoint Cejudo if he avoids Cejudo's power and the fight stays on the feet. He sees value in Cruz at plus 185 and plans to bet it, predicting a close decision win.

Cruz by decision; Cruz plus 185; will bet that

"I'm going to be taking Dominic Cruz here. ... I think he's going to be the more active fighter as long as he avoids that huge right hand from Cejudo."

DFS by the Numbers

Daniel Levi Expert Confident picked May 5, 2020 (4 days before fight)

Henry Cejudo

Daniel Levi is extremely confident in Henry Cejudo, calling him an all-time great and dismissing Cruz's chances. He highlights Cejudo's wins over DJ, TJ, and Moraes, and his championship adjustments. Levi believes Cruz is in denial, hasn't evolved, and will be finished within two rounds, noting that Cejudo will pounce if he drops Cruz, unlike Cody Garbrandt.

finishes Cruz within two rounds

"Henry cejudo will put down many crews down within two rounds and he's gonna be the first guy to stop him with strikes"

Half the Battle

MMA Lock of the Night Expert Lean picked May 6, 2020 (3 days before fight)

Dominick Cruz

Matt picks Cruz as an underdog, citing his footwork, height advantage, and ability to frustrate Cejudo. He questions Cejudo's striking entries and recovery from shoulder surgery, and believes Cruz can win a decision. He sees value at plus money but is not betting due to other viable dogs on the card.

Dominick Cruz by decision

"I'm picking Dominick Cruz to win by a decision the bet would be Dominick Cruz if he can get him at plus 200"

MMA Lock of the Night

WIN vs Marlon Moraes

TKO (punches) R3 4:51 · UFC 238: Cejudo vs. Moraes · Jun 08, 2019

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Henry Cejudo	0	90 of 171	52%	99 of 182	1 of 4	25%	1	0	2:40
Marlon Moraes	0	57 of 119	47%	59 of 121	0 of 2	0%	0	0	0:00

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Ctrl
1	Henry Cejudo	5 of 22	22%	5 of 22	0 of 1	0%	0	0:00
1	Marlon Moraes	16 of 37	43%	16 of 37	0 of 0	---	0	0:00
2	Henry Cejudo	38 of 84	45%	41 of 87	0 of 0	---	0	0:00
2	Marlon Moraes	31 of 59	52%	31 of 59	0 of 1	0%	0	0:00
3	Henry Cejudo	47 of 65	72%	53 of 73	1 of 3	33%	1	2:40
3	Marlon Moraes	10 of 23	43%	12 of 25	0 of 1	0%	0	0:00

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Henry Cejudo	90 of 171	52%	73 of 150	13 of 16	4 of 5	45 of 118	19 of 23	26 of 30
Marlon Moraes	57 of 119	47%	35 of 89	7 of 8	15 of 22	54 of 116	2 of 2	1 of 1

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Henry Cejudo	5 of 22	22%	3 of 19	0 of 0	2 of 3	5 of 22	0 of 0	0 of 0
1	Marlon Moraes	16 of 37	43%	4 of 20	3 of 3	9 of 14	16 of 37	0 of 0	0 of 0
2	Henry Cejudo	38 of 84	45%	31 of 75	5 of 7	2 of 2	27 of 70	11 of 14	0 of 0
2	Marlon Moraes	31 of 59	52%	24 of 50	1 of 2	6 of 7	30 of 58	1 of 1	0 of 0
3	Henry Cejudo	47 of 65	72%	39 of 56	8 of 9	0 of 0	13 of 26	8 of 9	26 of 30
3	Marlon Moraes	10 of 23	43%	7 of 19	3 of 3	0 of 1	8 of 21	1 of 1	1 of 1

WIN vs T.J. Dillashaw

TKO (punches) R1 0:32 · UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Dillashaw · Jan 19, 2019

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Henry Cejudo	1	18 of 23	78%	18 of 23	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:00
T.J. Dillashaw	0	1 of 3	33%	1 of 3	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:09

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
1	Henry Cejudo	1	18 of 23	78%	18 of 23	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:00
1	T.J. Dillashaw	0	1 of 3	33%	1 of 3	0 of 0	---	0	0	0:09

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Henry Cejudo	18 of 23	78%	17 of 22	1 of 1	0 of 0	3 of 6	0 of 0	15 of 17
T.J. Dillashaw	1 of 3	33%	0 of 1	0 of 0	1 of 2	1 of 3	0 of 0	0 of 0

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Henry Cejudo	18 of 23	78%	17 of 22	1 of 1	0 of 0	3 of 6	0 of 0	15 of 17
1	T.J. Dillashaw	1 of 3	33%	0 of 1	0 of 0	1 of 2	1 of 3	0 of 0	0 of 0

WIN vs Demetrious Johnson

Decision (split) (48–47, 47–48, 48–47) R5 5:00 · UFC 227: Dillashaw vs. Garbrandt 2 · Aug 04, 2018

Totals

Fighter	KD	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Sub. Att	Rev.	Ctrl
Henry Cejudo	0	81 of 134	60%	121 of 174	1 of 2	50%	0	0	0:36
Demetrious Johnson	0	51 of 147	34%	80 of 178	3 of 11	27%	0	0	4:37

Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Total Str.	TD	TD %	Ctrl
1	Henry Cejudo	21 of 32	65%	21 of 32	0 of 0	---	0:00
1	Demetrious Johnson	4 of 29	13%	4 of 29	0 of 1	0%	0:00
2	Henry Cejudo	15 of 29	51%	30 of 44	0 of 1	0%	0:00
2	Demetrious Johnson	11 of 33	33%	19 of 42	1 of 2	50%	1:29
3	Henry Cejudo	20 of 28	71%	32 of 40	1 of 1	100%	0:27
3	Demetrious Johnson	10 of 30	33%	12 of 32	0 of 3	0%	0:09
4	Henry Cejudo	9 of 18	50%	18 of 27	0 of 0	---	0:00
4	Demetrious Johnson	9 of 19	47%	22 of 32	1 of 1	100%	2:14
5	Henry Cejudo	16 of 27	59%	20 of 31	0 of 0	---	0:09
5	Demetrious Johnson	17 of 36	47%	23 of 43	1 of 4	25%	0:45

Significant Strikes

Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
Henry Cejudo	81 of 134	60%	23 of 62	19 of 21	39 of 51	73 of 125	7 of 8	1 of 1
Demetrious Johnson	51 of 147	34%	29 of 116	18 of 25	4 of 6	31 of 120	17 of 22	3 of 5

Significant Strikes Per Round

Rd	Fighter	Sig. Str.	Sig. Str. %	Head	Body	Leg	Distance	Clinch	Ground
1	Henry Cejudo	21 of 32	65%	5 of 10	4 of 6	12 of 16	20 of 31	1 of 1	0 of 0
1	Demetrious Johnson	4 of 29	13%	4 of 28	0 of 1	0 of 0	1 of 24	3 of 5	0 of 0
2	Henry Cejudo	15 of 29	51%	4 of 11	5 of 5	6 of 13	14 of 27	1 of 2	0 of 0
2	Demetrious Johnson	11 of 33	33%	5 of 24	5 of 7	1 of 2	9 of 30	2 of 3	0 of 0
3	Henry Cejudo	20 of 28	71%	5 of 13	6 of 6	9 of 9	17 of 25	2 of 2	1 of 1
3	Demetrious Johnson	10 of 30	33%	6 of 24	3 of 4	1 of 2	8 of 27	2 of 3	0 of 0
4	Henry Cejudo	9 of 18	50%	3 of 12	1 of 1	5 of 5	8 of 17	1 of 1	0 of 0
4	Demetrious Johnson	9 of 19	47%	5 of 15	3 of 3	1 of 1	4 of 11	2 of 3	3 of 5
5	Henry Cejudo	16 of 27	59%	6 of 16	3 of 3	7 of 8	14 of 25	2 of 2	0 of 0
5	Demetrious Johnson	17 of 36	47%	9 of 25	7 of 10	1 of 1	9 of 28	8 of 8	0 of 0

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