"Not even his credentials match up to mine" - Henry Cejudo says he loves Khabib Nurmagomedov but prefers his own legacy to 29-0
Henry Cejudo recently compared his legacy to that of Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Within the context of UFC champions both past and present, Cejudo's credentials certainly stand out. After winning an Olympic gold medal at the 2008 Olympic Games, 'Triple C' went on to add the UFC flyweight and bantamweight titles to his résumé.
Outside of his cringey persona, he's a world class athlete who has the potential to do even more in the sport if he decides to come back. During a recent interview with John Morgan, Cejudo spoke about how he believes his body of work stacks up against someone like Nurmagomedov. He said:
“The money isn’t worth the legacy. My legacy is unblemished. Yeah, Khabib just got inducted into the Hall of Fame, but not even his credentials match up to mine. I’ve got another belt on top of that, and on top of that I have an Olympic gold medal. I prefer that over 29-0 any day, and I love Khabib."
He added:
"The reason why I’m saying that is because it’s different, you know what I mean? I guess I’m not that company guy. I’m that freakin’ black sheep that’s trying to make money. I’m not saying to start a union here, what I’m saying is pay me. I want that green, I deserve that damn green. Every man for his damn self and that’s the way I see it.”
Watch Henry Cejudo's interview with John Morgan below:
The final run of Khabib Nurmagomedov
While many fans would love to see Khabib Nurmagomedov step back into the octagon at some point in the future, it looks increasingly unlikely with each passing day.
His last stretch in the UFC will forever be remembered, starting off with his title-winning performance against Al Iaquinta to initially capture the lightweight strap. From there, he successfully defended it three times, submitting Conor McGregor, Dustin Poirier and Justin Gaethje to retain his belt.
Following his win over Gaethje at UFC 254 in 2020, 'The Eagle' shockingly announced his retirement. He finished his professional career with a record of 29-0. At the recently concluded UFC 272 pay-per-view, it was announced that he would be inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.
Khabib Nurmagomedov has been inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame 🦅 https://t.co/cfNQa06vet