On Saturday, UFC bantamweight champ Henry Cejudo faces off against former two-time UFC 135-pound kingpin Dominick Cruz. Cejudo captured the vacant bantamweight title in June 2019 with a third-round TKO of Marlon Moraes. Cejudo’s matchup against Cruz is his first attempt to defend that belt. The contest serves as the co-main event of UFC 249.


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Cruz, who is the former WEC bantamweight champ and the inaugural UFC bantamweight titleholder, has not set foot inside the octagon since a December 2016 decision loss to Cody Garbrandt ended his second stint as UFC 135-pound champion. Garbrandt ended Cruz’s 13-fight winning streak that night at UFC 207.

Cejudo has won his past five outings. That winning streak includes his victory over Demetrious Johnson to capture the flyweight title and a 32-second knockout win over T.J. Dillashaw in his only defense of that belt. Cejudo surrendered the 125-pound strap in December 2019 so he could focus on the 135-pound division.

Cruz’s career has been slowed by injuries in the past. In 2014 he ended a break of nearly three years. He faced Takeya Mizugaki on his comeback fight. Cruz scored a 61-second TKO win in that outing. In his next fight Cruz defeated Dillashaw via split decision to begin his second run as bantamweight champion. He defended that title against Urijah Faber in June 2016 before he lost to Garbrandt. If any UFC fighter can make a comeback after nearly four years away, it’s Cruz.

Cejudo is a top-notch wrestler, he won the gold medal at the 2008 Olympics in freestyle wrestling. He is also a talented striker, but he offers nothing that Cruz hasn’t seen before.

Cruz is one of the most talented fighters in UFC history. His movement, striking, cardio and focus make him a special competitor. Cruz should defeat Cejudo, but there is always some worry about injuries when it comes to the former champ. Despite those concerns, I believe Cruz will edge out Cejudo on the scorecards to capture UFC gold for a third time.