Aljamain Sterling defeated Henry Cejudo at UFC 288, generating mixed reactions from fellow fighters on Twitter.
At UFC 288, reigning bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling faced off against the returning Henry Cejudo, providing fight fans with an opportunity to finally determine the best 135-pound fighter in the world. Cejudo, a former UFC bantamweight and flyweight champion, hadn’t made the walk to the octagon since his win over Dominick Cruz at UFC 249 in May 2020. After that fight, the former Olympic champion announced his retirement from competition.
However, Cejudo’s retirement didn’t last long as he was welcomed back on Saturday by the red-hot Sterling, who entered his title defense on the verge of setting several UFC records. The highly anticipated matchup took place at the Prudential Center in New Jersey, and fighters and fans alike shared their reactions to Sterling’s victory on social media.
Conor McGregor tweeted, “Easiest money I’ve ever made. Not a scratch on Aljo! Congrats Funkmaster! Good little fighter is Henry but give it a rest with these agendas all the time. The guy is sub 20 fights in his career. His little feints an all ahaha omg please teach me mastermind lol. Done the splits…” Others, such as Terrance McKinney, acknowledged the close nature of the match, stating “That was a great fight and coulda went either way. Good win by the champ.” Some had a difficult time scoring the fight and determining a clear winner, like Megan Anderson who said, “Incredibly close fight to score. I had Cejudo but definitely wouldn’t want to be a judge for that one. Gotta respect Sterling as a competitor!” Regardless of the outcome, the thrilling fight has left the MMA world buzzing.