UFC 323 storylines: Likely Henry Cejudo’s final fight before retirement

Henry Cejudo has said heading into the weekend that his UFC 323 main card matchup with Payton Talbott will, in all probability, be the final fight of his mixed martial arts career.

“This is it for me,” Cejudo told reporters in Las Vegas at the start of fight week. “Unless (Dana White) gets me a big fight with some other Mexican, then I’d be willing to do it. Other than that, I think I’ve done everything at the highest level since I was 11 years old. From cutting weight at that damn time, and there’s just a lot of satisfaction in my life. I’m ready to move on, too. I have a couple kids that want to play with their dad 24/7.”

The former flyweight and bantamweight champion is one of the most accomplished combat sports athletes of his generation. Cejudo won an Olympic gold medal in freestyle wrestling in 2008 before beginning MMA in 2013. He became the first Olympic champion also to win a UFC title when he upset longtime 125-pound champion Demetrious Johnson in 2018. Then in 2019, after defending the flyweight title against T.J. Dillashaw, Cejudo moved up to 135 pounds later that year and became the bantamweight champ.

Cejudo previously retired in 2020 after defending the bantamweight title against former champ Dominick Cruz in May of 2020, but eventually returned to the sport three years later. However, he hasn’t gotten his hand raised since he left on top.

Now, just two months away from his 39th birthday, Cejudo enters his farewell fight on a three-fight losing streak and is hoping to go out on a winning note and leave without a bitter taste in his mouth. 

Cejudo lost a split decision in his 2023 comeback to then-titleholder Aljamain Sterling before being outworked by current champion Merab Dvalishvili in his lone 2024 showing. His most recent appearance ended in unfortunate circumstances earlier this year when he lost a technical decision to Song Yadong in February after an eye poke rendered Cejudo unable to continue. That five-round bout was called off after just three rounds due to the injury.

The five-foot-four California native will be at a significant height and reach disadvantage against the five-foot-10 Talbott, and is also a significant betting underdog, but Cejudo does hold a significant advantage in both experience and strength of schedule.

Cejudo is one of only 11 two-weight champions in UFC history, in all likelihood a future Hall of Famer, and hanging up his gloves after a win over a rising star like Talbott would be a positive way to conclude his impressive fighting career.

Here’s what else is happening on the UFC 323 undercard:

Emerging contenders: Before the pair of championship bouts get underway this weekend at UFC 323, fight fans will get their fill of rising stars as a trio of emerging contenders will each take on a former UFC champion on the main card.

As mentioned above, Talbott is facing Cejudo in a pivotal 135-pound bout. The touted up-and-comer from Nevada gained traction after earning a UFC contract in 2023 through Dana White’s Contender Series and finishing his first three UFC opponents. He had his first setback in January, losing a decision to crafty vet Raoni Barcelos, but bounced back with an impressive decision win over Felipe Lima in June that earned him this spotlight matchup with Cejudo.

“Henry needs to go out on a win, and now I’m going to have to stand in the way of that,” Talbott said Wednesday at UFC 323 media day when asked about being Cejudo’s final opponent.

Two-time flyweight champion Brandon Moreno will look to extend his current winning streak to three when he faces touted 25-year-old contender Tatsuro Taira. This will mark Moreno’s first scheduled three-round bout in more than five years. He participated in six consecutive title fights from late 2020 to mid-2023 and has headlined Fight Night cards in each of his past three outings.

Meanwhile, Taira is 16-1 in MMA with his only loss a split decision to Brandon Royval 13 months ago. Taira is 25 years old and, just like 24-year-old flyweight title challenger Joshua Van, who faces Alexandre Pantoja in the co-main event, the rising star from Japan represents the future of the 125-pound division. A win over Moreno would get him closer to earning a shot at gold, and if Taira can become the first fighter to finish Moreno, then a title shot could come as soon as sometime in 2026.

In the 205-pound division, Bogdan Guskov will be looking for his fifth consecutive stoppage win when he meets former light-heavyweight titleholder Jan Blachowicz. Uzbekistan’s Guskov, 33, has won eight of his past fights since 2021 and will break into the top 10 of the division if he can earn what would be the biggest win of his career. Blachowicz is 42 and winless in his past three fights, with a draw against Magomed Ankalaev in 2022, a split-decision loss to Alex Pereira in 2023 and a close decision to Carlos Ulberg this past March. Blachowicz’s most recent win that wasn’t due to an opponent injury was his 2021 title defence against Israel Adesanya.

On the preliminary card, Maycee Barber returns for the first time in a while as she hopes to remind people why she has been viewed as a future title contender. Barber, 27, is riding a six-fight winning streak, but she hasn’t fought since March of 2024. Unspecified prolonged health issues have kept her out of action. She had been scheduled to headline a Fight Night card in late May against Erin Blanchfield, but withdrew literally minutes before she was scheduled to walk to the cage due to a medical emergency. Barber is the No. 5-ranked contender at 125 pounds and can inch closer to a women’s flyweight title shot with a good showing against Karine Silva on Saturday.

Lightweights jockey for position: The prelims have four fan-friendly matchups in the 155-pound division, including a featured bout between Grant Dawson and Manuel Torres. Dawson is the No. 13 lightweight contender, and Torres is looking to take his spot in the rankings. Torres is 4-1 in the UFC with four stoppage wins, while Grant is 11-1-1 since debuting in 2019.

The first of the four lightweight bouts is Edson Barboza vs. Jalin Turner. Barboza, 39, is a 15-year UFC veteran competing in his 32nd UFC bout and looking to snap a two-fight skid.

Turner, 30, has lost four of his past five fights and actually announced his retirement in March following a submission loss to Ignacio Bahamondes. After reconsidering retirement, Turner returns looking to add another highlight-reel finish to his record. Turner is 14-9 in MMA, with all 14 wins coming by either KO/TKO or submission. Barboza has been finished six times in his UFC career, but only once in the past six years.

One fight not likely to require the cageside judges is Terrance McKinney vs. Chris Duncan. Twenty of McKinney’s 24 pro bouts have ended in the first round, and none have gone the distance, while Duncan has only been to a decision four times in his 16-fight career.

Nazim Sadykhov is coming off a Fight of the Year contender in June when he stopped Nikolas Motta. He’ll look to finish the year strong as he faces another striker in France’s Fares Ziam, who has won five in a row and seven of his eight UFC appearances. The winner of this one could end up being one of the lightweights to watch in 2026.

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