Henry Cejudo (image via UFC/YouTube)

By FCF Staff

As Henry Cejudo prepares for his second fight, since he ended his retirement last year, the decorated fighter has acknowledged he’s carrying a must-win, mindset.

The former bantamweight and flyweight champion is scheduled to fight fellow top-contender, Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298, on February 17th. The bout will mark the second time Cejudo has competed, since he dropped a split decision loss to Aljamain Sterling last May.

More recently, the accomplished wrestler appeared on the HJR Experiment. While doing so, the 36-year-old admitted that a loss at UFC 298 could prompt him to reconsider his comeback (quotes via MMA Fighting.com).

“This is for the No. 1 contender spot,” Cejudo said. “I think after losing to Aljamain, I think if I was going to go maybe down the ladder, I would probably be done with fighting again. Yeah, man. Because it’s just like, this sport is hard, man. Training camps, having two kids and things like that.

“It’s all or nothing, man.”

Cejudo (16-3) initially retired in 2020 after stopping Dominick Cruz. Dvalishvili (16-4), meanwhile, is riding a nine-fight, winning streak. The 33-year-old hasn’t fought since March, 2023, when he recorded a decision win over Petr Yan.

UFC 298 will be hosted by Anaheim, California. In the main event, featherweight champion Alexander Volkanovski will face Ilia Topuria.