Henry Cejudo vs. Marlon Moraes – UFC 238
June 8, 2019
At UFC 238, flyweight champion [autotag]Henry Cejudo[/autotag] was attempting to move up in weight and join a select few fighters who have held two UFC titles simultaneously.
After T.J. Dillashaw was stripped of his bantamweight title, Cejudo faced the streaking [autotag]Marlon Moraes[/autotag] for the vacant 135-pound title, and a place in history.
Brazil’s Moraes was on a tear, having knocked out his last three opponents in the first round, and he quickly showed why. He threw heavy kicks early, and made Cejudo pay with combinations every time the Olympic gold medallist tried to close the distance.
Moraes’ continued leg kicks eventually forced Cejudo to switch stances throughout the fight. But in Round 2, despite his leg being compromised, Cejudo started to put the pressure on Moraes, as he turned the fight into a toe-to-toe brawl.
The pressure started to wear on a visibly tired Moraes and, by the end of the second round, the momentum had swung Cejudo’s way. The flyweight champ continued to throw big knees in the clinch in Round 3 and, eventually, managed to drag Moraes to the ground and finish his man on the mat with just nine seconds left in the round.
It was the birth of “Triple C:” Olympic champ, the flyweight champ and, thanks to that win, the bantamweight champ.
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