The bantamweight division is without a champion. Former bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo has been removed from the bantamweight rankings. ESPN’s Marc Raimondi and Ariel Helwani report yesterday that Cejudo has officially retired and the bantamweight championship is vacant.
Thank you for the awesome experiences uncle @danawhite I will forever be grateful. Thank you for taking a chance on the sport that people thought would never make it. To all my coaches and fans it been a wonderful ride. Triple C is out 🎤 #retiredontop pic.twitter.com/ZoHa3asoDU
— Henry Cejudo (@HenryCejudo) May 25, 2020
Cejudo defeated former UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz by TKO at UFC 249 on May 9. After the win, Cejudo announced that he was ready to retire if the UFC wasn’t going to increase his pay. Cejudo manager Ali Abdelaziz refuted that Cejudo is retiring in an interview with TMZ. In the interview Abdelaziz said, “Henry has everyone on their knees right now. I don’t think he is going to retire. You’re going to see him fight by the Summer.” For now, Cejudo is considered to have retired from MMA. He ends his career with a record of 16-2 and a two-division UFC champion.
The bantamweight division is stacked with possible title contenders. Top five ranked bantamweights Aljamain Sterling(Ranked second) and Cory Sandhagen(Ranked fourth) will fight each other at UFC 250 on June 6. The UFC has not announced if the fight will be for the vacant bantamweight championship yet. Former UFC lightweight champion Frankie Edgar will face seventh-ranked bantamweight Pedro Munhoz on July 11. Although Cejudo retires as champion, the UFC has options on who can take his place.