Henry Cejudo gunning for coach of the year award after Deiveson Figueiredo's UFC 270 win
Henry Cejudo has established himself as an early candidate for the coach of the year award following Deiveson Figueiredo's victory over Brandon Moreno at UFC 270. After losing the flyweight title to Moreno via a rear-naked choke in their rematch back at UFC 263, 'Deus Da Guerra' started training with Cejudo to avenge the loss.
Heading into the fight, the Brazilian said Cejudo helped him iron out his errors from the rematch with Moreno and taught him new tricks that'd help him recapture his lost throne. When Moreno and Figueiredo met at UFC 270, the Brazilian looked like a different beast.
Following the Brazilian's win, Cejudo took to social media to lay claim to the coach of the year award.
"You guys make sure to expedite my coach of the year Trophy. Sincerely the Short Kings #golddiggers" Cejudo wrote on Instagram.
Figueiredo certainly seemed to have picked up a few things from Cejudo. His stance was strikingly similar to the one Cejudo used when he fought Dominick Cruz at UFC 249. The Brazilian was patient in his approach and more precise in his striking compared to the first two fights with Moreno.
Figueiredo also hindered Moreno's movement with the help of leg kicks and managed to knock him down thrice in the fight. Figueiredo was declared the winner at the end of five rounds as he successfully recaptured the flyweight title.
Interestingly, former light heavyweight champion Jon Jones has also been training with Cejudo and claimed that 'Triple C' is helping him further sharpen his wrestling skills. It remains to be seen whether 'Bones' will benefit from the collaboration with Cejudo once he returns to the octagon for a stint in the heavyweight division.
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Henry Cejudo wants to step out of retirement to fight for third UFC title
Henry Cejudo is targeting a potential return to the octagon down the line. The retired fighter wants to compete again, this time in the featherweight division against current champion Alexander Volkanovski. Cejudo is keen to fight the Australian in a bid to capture titles in three different weight classes.
While Cejudo wants to fight for the featherweight title upon his return, UFC president Dana White has seemingly quashed those plans. According to him, Cejudo has been retired for a while now and must recapture the 135lbs title before thinking about switching weight classes.
Do you guys see how Dana and Alex are on the same script, “What if he does get the Job done” it’s plain and simple @danawhite doesn’t have faith in his featherweight chump https://t.co/g6ZgjnTj47