Former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo has pushed back on claims he was looking for a way out of Saturday’s main event against Song Yadong.
Cejudo’s wait for a first victory since returning from retirement in 2023 goes on after this weekend’s UFC Fight Night in Seattle, Washington, which he headlined in defense of his #7 spot in the bantamweight rankings.
After defeats to Aljamain Sterling and Merab Dvalishvili, “Triple C” fell to a third straight loss inside Climate Pledge Arena — but not in a common way.
Cejudo was handed a technical decision setback after being unable to continue due to a deep eye poke late in the third frame. With referee Jason Herzog deeming the foul unintentional — and with over half the scheduled rounds complete — the bout went to the scorecards, all of which were in favor of “The Kung Fu Kid.”
As is often the case when an athlete doesn’t continue following a foul, Cejudo has faced flak from some corners of the MMA community who have accused him of quitting.
The 2008 Olympic gold medalist has not taken kindly to such claims, taking to X to hit back at the allegation by listing the injuries he apparently sustained from Song’s poke.
“Diplopia, Soft Tissue Damage, Corneal Abrasion,” he wrote.”‘hE wANteD a wAy OuT’ #UFCSeattle“
It remains to be seen what will come next for Cejudo in the UFC. While the two fighters expressed mutual interest in running things back, UFC CEO Dana White was quick to shut that suggestion down during his post-fight press conference.