“Today marks a new chapter in boxing history,” declared His Excellency Turki Alalshikh in an Instagram post less than a week ago. And let’s be real—he wasn’t kidding. On Wednesday, he made serious waves by teaming up with TKO Group Holdings for a multi-year deal to launch a brand-new boxing promotion, with none other than UFC CEO Dana White at the helm. The goal? To build a more sustainable future for boxing and solidify Sela’s status as a powerhouse in global sports and entertainment. If that’s not a power move, I don’t know what is.

Now, here’s where things get interesting. Some people love the idea. Others? Not so much. The big shake-up? His Excellency Turki Alalshikh and Dana White want to scrap the old system of four different champions per weight class. Instead, there’ll be one champ per division, one belt. Simple, right? Well, not everyone’s on board with tossing tradition out the window. Some folks think mixing UFC-style structure with boxing is like trying to blend oil and water. Is it that bad? Well, one former UFC Flyweight champion recently opened up about the pros and cons of the rules laid out for TKO Boxing. What did he say? Let’s find out.

Henry Cejudo on the latest news

Mere hours ago, Pound 4 Pound with Kamaru & Henry shared their podcast as usual. Interestingly, both Kamaru Usman and Henry Cejudo agreed that Turki Alalshikh is making a great impact on boxing. But there was one thing Cejudo didn’t like about the new rules. He believed that boxing had been around way longer than MMA, and because of that, it’s way more competitive. The problem? There are simply too many belts. This makes it hard to determine a true champion. His solution? Cut it down to two belts. “I would like to see at least two belts,” he mentioned.

And Henry Cejudo believed Turki Alalshikh could make that happen. How? Simple—Money. “I think it’s an easy sweep for Turki Alalshikh and TKO. Because that’s all Turki needs to do is,  just buy the governing bodies out. You offer them all $100 million, they are all going to take it,” the 38-year-old suggested. However, WBC might not get on board as that belt holds deep significance in Mexico.

Why? Because the WBC is a Mexico-based organization, and that belt means everything over there. Anyway, as Cejudo puts it, “money talks”, and that kind of offer would be hard to refuse. Next, when it came to fighter pay, Cejudo made an important distinction. He didn’t think boxing should adopt the UFC model because boxing is way “more dangerous”. Why? “Boxing is a lot more dangerous than what the sport of mixed martial arts is. Like dude, they’re taking blows to the Head. These boxers, they train harder than anybody in probably in any sport. Just like wrestler dude,” he explained. In his eyes, boxers deserve bigger paydays because of the risks they take.

Ultimately, Cejudo saw Turki as the guy who’s actually making things happen. He called him “promoter of the year” for a reason—Turki Alalshikh is pouring millions into the sport, setting up the biggest fights, and making sure “the best fight the best”. He even brought up the whole situation with Canelo Alvarez. At first, the WBC and WBO World Super Middleweight and Turki Alalashikh weren’t seeing eye to eye, but now? They’re “shaking hands and calling each other bro bro” and doing business. Cejudo’s main point? It’s all business, and Turki Alalshikh sees the bigger picture. And for boxing fans? That’s a good thing.

While Henry Cejudo agreed with the bigger picture HE Alalshikh is trying to paint, there is one thing that Henry Cejudo went against. He wanted two belts, remember? But that is not what the UFC CEO wanted.

Dana White takes the old school approach

So, WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman? Yeah, he’s not losing sleep over this whole TKO boxing shake-up. But let’s be real—Dana White and Turki Alalshikh are making some big moves. Dana white wants to go old school—one champ per division, no more interim titles and sanctioning body drama. Fighters will have to earn their way up the ranks, UFC-style. And if the WBC, IBF, and WBA don’t want in? Dana’s basically saying, cool, do your thing, but we’re not playing that game.

Meanwhile, HE Alalshikh is putting his money where his mouth is. He’s pushing the WBC Boxing Grand Prix to scout fresh talent, and he’s making sure women’s boxing gets the spotlight it deserves.

That said, what do you think about the one-belt-system? Is Dana White’s UFC-style boxing league a game-changer or a mistake? Do share your thoughts with us below.