UFC Seattle past Saturday night was turning out to be a night full of knockouts galore. The prelims card saw ‘all finishes’ making it really difficult for Dana White to choose the right ones for fight bonuses.  The main event featuring former two-division champ Henry Cejudo (#7 BW) vs ‘The Kung-Fu Kid’ Song Yadong (#8 BW) however came to a salty ending with a technical loss for Cejudo due to an eye poke. Henry’s former foe and now a good friend, Demetrious Johnson was ‘mighty’ concerned after the fight and had a very clear advice for Cejudo moving forward.

“I’d like to see him retire. He’s got a great podcast with him and Kamaru Usman. He’s got two beautiful children, he’s got a beautiful wife, he’s got businesses. There’s no reason for him to fight and keep risking his health” DJ said in his podcast. Breaking down the fight, ‘Mighty Mouse’ thinks that Henry started off well in the first round. But Song had the speed advantage and even visibly had the power advantage over the Olympian wrestler as the fight progressed.

“Song did a very good job chopping that leg of Henry. That made him his switch stance to southpaw. But from southpaw, Henry had that overhand right going which he hurt Song with a couple of times.”, breaking down the fight, Demetrious added. When it came down to the eye-poke, DJ’s concern for Henry was hilariously expressive. “If Henry’s eyes were V—-a and Song’s fingers were p—s, Henry would be pregnant right now!” 

Henry Cejudo and Demetrious John crossed paths in their careers twice (2016 & 2018). In their first clash at UFC 197, ‘Mighty Mouse’ wiped the floor with ‘Triple C’, finishing him in the first round. After that, he put on a brave effort but came up short against Joseph Benavidez at the TUF: Tournament of Champions finale. Back-to-back losses after an undefeated run ignited a fire under Cejudo who showed major improvements in his next two fights before getting a shot at the title once more.

Positioning himself for another chance at the belt against Demetrious Johnson, Henry Cejudo took the victory via split decision and became the first man ever to defeat ‘Mighty Mouse’ in the flyweight division. Now several years later, the relationship between the two competitors is at a completely different dynamic, and Johnson is rightfully advising his friend to call it a day.

What will be Henry Cejudo’s road ahead?

At the age of 38, there aren’t many options for Cejudo now, if his dream of becoming the champ again has to be kept alive. Dana White, after the fight in Seattle, does not seem interested in having a rematch between the two, leaving ‘Triple C’ with so many questions for his future. Will he have any clear path to the title championship now? How much time will he take to recover and get back on a training schedule? How many fights before he will get a shot now? And most of all, at his age, is his body ready to take on the killers that are ahead of him in the rankings?

Henry uploaded a video giving an update on his condition and showed a very graphic shot of his left eye. In the video, he also requested Dana White to reconsider his decision of not having a rematch between him and Yadong. He feels he can get back on track within a month and will be ready then to take on the Chinese fighter.

Yadong, on the other, hand has shown interest in moving forwards towards the title. In his post-fight interview, Song has not completely denied a rematch, but only if the UFC asks for it. Maybe it’s time for Henry Cejudo to take Demetrious Johnson’s advice and shift his focus on the things in his life, other than fighting.

Triple C’s alternative career options

We all know that Henry carries a very camera-friendly persona and he seems to enjoy content production around MMA just as much. His podcast with Kamaru Usman, Pound for Pound, has over 118k followers, and they cover almost every aspect of the the fight game. He is also an investor in a sports e-commerce and streaming platform, Millions.co. 

Apart from content production, Cejudo has also helped train some fighters in the past. With his vast knowledge of the sport and experience inside the octagon, this could be one of the ventures that he should explore going ahead. In the past, he has helped the likes of Jon Jones, Zhang Weili, Mighty Mouse, and Deiveson Figueiredo. 

In terms of his last loss, it is too fresh a wound to say anything right now. Maybe this is the time for Henry and his coaches to let him recover and come up with a clear path for him later. Whatever the future holds for ‘the King of Cringe’ it is yet to be seen. But as ‘Mighty Mouse’ suggested, it might be time for ‘Triple C’ to consider re-retirement and stick to it for good this time around. What do you think Henry’s next step should be? Let us know in the comments.