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UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has suggested that he won’t return to action until 2023, but when he does return, should he face Sean O’Malley, or former champion Henry Cejudo?
Both Sean O’Malley and Henry Cejudo definitely have fair claims to fight Aljamain Sterling for the UFC bantamweight title, so which of these two outstanding fighters deserves the shot first?
In a perfect world, the two men would probably be matched together with the winner facing ‘Funk Master’, but it seems more likely that the UFC will hold one of them back for a straight title shot.
With that in mind, here are three reasons why Sean O’Malley deserves a UFC bantamweight title shot over Henry Cejudo – and two reasons why he doesn’t.
#3. Sean O’Malley has a better UFC record than Henry Cejudo at bantamweight
While it’s impossible to argue with Henry Cejudo’s overall accomplishments in the UFC, ‘Triple C’ doesn’t exactly have an extensive record in the bantamweight division.
Cejudo fought for the majority of his UFC tenure as a flyweight, and only moved up to 135lbs in mid-2019. Sure, he immediately defeated Marlon Moraes to claim the then-vacant bantamweight title, and then defended it against the legendary Dominick Cruz in 2020, but due to his self-imposed hiatus, those two victories remain his only two recent ones at the weight.
Sean O’Malley, on the other hand, has slowly been building a genuinely excellent ledger at 135lbs since making his octagon debut back in 2017.
It’s fair to say that ‘Sugar’ snacked on low-level competition for his first few bouts in the promotion. However, since returning from a suspension in early 2020, he’s slowly climbed the ladder and now has respectable wins over foes like Thomas Almeida and Eddie Wineland to go along with his recent huge win over former champion Petr Yan.
Essentially, it’s very arguable that O’Malley’s win over Yan stands out as being better than any victory that Cejudo recorded during his octagon, ignoring the Olympian’s win over Demetrious Johnson at 125lbs in 2018.
Cejudo's best wins, outside of Johnson, came over T.J. Dillashaw, Moraes and Cruz. However, his victory over Dillashaw came at 125lbs, a weight that clearly didn't suit the TUF veteran, Moraes quickly slipped down the ladder after losing to 'Triple C', bringing into question actually how good he was in the first place, and Cruz hadn't fought in almost four years prior this bout with the Olympian.
With that considered, there’s no doubt that Sean O’Malley is the more proven fighter at bantamweight, and thus he deserves the first crack at Aljamain Sterling.
#2. Sean O’Malley might be a bigger star than Henry Cejudo right now
While great accomplishments inside the octagon are all well and good, it’s arguable that in the eyes of the UFC brass, star power is more important than actual fighting ability when it comes to deciding which fighters compete for titles.
Therefore, there’s every chance that the next shot at reigning bantamweight kingpin Aljamain Sterling will come down to which fighter Dana White and company feel can draw more money alongside ‘Funk Master’.
So is Sean O’Malley a bigger star than Henry Cejudo? It’s debatable, but the answer may well be a resounding yes.
Firstly, ‘Sugar’ has been pushed as a big deal by the promotion ever since his debut. One of the first graduates of Dana White’s Contender Series, O’Malley was given main card showcases right away. His star has been growing over the past two years to the point that he’s become one of the UFC’s most recognizable characters.
In fact, White himself went on record to compare ‘Sugar’ to the biggest star in UFC history – Conor McGregor – and stated that his fight with Petr Yan at UFC 280 could be compared to the Irishman’s famous breakout fight with Jose Aldo.
Sure, O’Malley isn’t a proven drawing card yet, but that may only be because he has yet to headline a show.
Is Cejudo a big draw, though? That’s also debatable. ‘Triple C’ loves to talk himself up as a major superstar, but the one pay-per-view he headlined never had its buyrate released. While his bout with Dominick Cruz came on a show that drew well, that event was also the first one to take place during the COVID-19 pandemic when fans were desperate for any kind of live sport to watch.
Right now, with Cejudo having been on the shelf for over two years, then, it’s arguable that ‘Sugar’ is the more recognizable fighter, and that may be enough to give him the nod in the race for a title shot.
#1. Henry Cejudo has been out for far too long to warrant an instant title shot
Perhaps the biggest thing standing against Henry Cejudo when it comes to being granted an instant title shot against current UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling is his lengthy hiatus from the octagon.
‘Triple C’ hasn’t fought since his May 2020 win over Dominick Cruz and it’s not like he’s been on the shelf due to an injury. Cejudo chose to “retire” from MMA and regardless of the reasons for this decision, he could’ve come back at any time and yet still hasn’t.
Given that he chose to walk away from the octagon, would it really be fair to let him leapfrog a fighter like Sean O’Malley, who has fought on no fewer than seven occasions since Cejudo’s bout with Cruz?
In all honesty, the answer should be no. It’d be one thing to reward ‘Triple C’ with a title shot had he been stuck on the shelf with injuries, but to simply bow down to his demands upon his return would be folly for the promotion, especially as there are question marks over his star power.
With that considered, then, Cejudo should return in a tune-up fight – allowing Sean O’Malley to fight Sterling for the title instead.
With those points considered, here are two reasons why Henry Cejudo and not Sean O’Malley ought to be given the next bantamweight title shot.
#2. Sean O’Malley’s biggest win was hugely controversial and the rest of his record isn’t that great
The big thing standing against the case for Sean O’Malley to be granted the next shot at UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling is the fact that outside of his big win over Petr Yan, his record is a little questionable.
Sure, wins over the likes of Thomas Almeida and Eddie Wineland are solid, but they shouldn’t make a top contender. Basically, O’Malley’s claim to a title shot is purely based on his victory over ‘No Mercy’.
If ‘Sugar’ had knocked Yan out, then his claim would be undisputable. Unfortunately, his win over the Russian was as questionable as it gets.
While the bout was absolutely fantastic to watch, and proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that O’Malley is an elite-level fighter, most observers – including a huge number of other UFC fighters – felt that ‘No Mercy’ clearly did enough to deserve the nod from the judges.
Instead, ‘Sugar’ claimed a split decision, and it didn’t take long for plenty of people to take to social media to cry “robbery.”
It’s true that some fighters have been granted UFC title shots following tight victories before. However, usually, there wasn’t another deserving contender in those cases.
In this case, of course, there is a deserving contender in the form of Henry Cejudo. With that considered, should Sean O’Malley’s questionable win over Yan be enough to let him leapfrog ‘Triple C’? The answer may be no.
#1. Henry Cejudo never lost the UFC bantamweight title inside the octagon
Ignoring Sean O’Malley’s accomplishments for a moment, there’s a major reason why Henry Cejudo should definitely be allowed to fight for the UFC bantamweight title upon his return without having to wait.
Simply put, Cejudo still has a claim to the title as he never actually lost it in the octagon, instead giving it up voluntarily to head into a self-imposed hiatus that hasn’t yet come to an end.
When he left the UFC, ‘Triple C’ was clearly the top bantamweight on the planet, having beaten the surging Marlon Moraes for the vacant title before defending it against the legendary Dominick Cruz.
Would he have beaten the likes of Petr Yan or Jose Aldo? It’s hard to say, but the fact is that he didn’t lose to them either.
With Cejudo away from the UFC, Aljamain Sterling’s wins over Yan, T.J. Dillashaw and Cory Sandhagen undoubtedly make him not only the top 135lber on the planet, but the undisputed bantamweight champion, too.
However, in some senses, the moment that ‘Triple C’ confirms his return to action, Sterling’s title ought to become disputed. After all, Cejudo never lost his title.
With that in mind, the only rightful way to go would be to set up what would be a de facto title unification bout between the Olympian and ‘Funk Master’ – and have O’Malley fight the winner.
