UFC 287: Ali Abdelaziz shuts down Henry Cejudo vs. Aljamain Sterling rumor

Henry Cejudo: Aljamain Sterling Is Scared Of Me! Let’s Fight In Co-Main Of Islam vs Volkanovski

Henry Cejudo’s manager, Ali Abdelaziz, has shut down the rumor that the UFC was planning to have Aljamain Sterling defend his bantamweight title against his fighter at UFC 287 on April 8 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

If the rumor were otherwise true, Cejudo would be on a comeback after a three-year hiatus due to an injury. Before retirement, he had defeated Dominick Cruz in a title defense at UFC 249.

Sources had earlier reported that Cejudo had met and talked to UFC Chief Business Officer Hunter Campbell and UFC matchmaker Sean Shelby to schedule a fight against Sterling at UFC 287.

However, Abdelaziz recently denied that the fight would take place, saying on Twitter that it was “Fake news.”

MMAFighting.com

2023-01-25 18:09

Aljamain Sterling vs. Henry Cejudo targeted for UFC 287 on April 8 (@DamonMartin, @MikeHeck_JR) https://t.co/ddnJKGxC4c https://t.co/LnSFjcdXwH

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‘I’m going to need this bicep to compete at 100 percent’

As the reigning UFC bantamweight champion, Sterling last defended his title from TJ Dillashaw in October at UFC 280. He secured his belt after notching a second-round TKO.

The fight against Dillashaw was Sterling’s second title defense after winning the belt against Petr Yan at UFC 259, cementing his name as the first UFC champion in history to get the title through disqualification. Sterling secured another title defense against Yan in a rematch at UFC 273.

A matchup between the two had been proposed for March, but Sterling confirmed he would not be able to fight due to injury treatment. He also said Cejudo would have “physical advantages” because the 35-year-old fighter had not been fighting for three years, accusing him of “doing who knows what” during that time frame.

“I’m going to need this bicep to compete at 100 percent, and I don’t take Henry Cejudo lightly. … I’ve got to make sure I’m in shape, and it’s hard to get in shape when I have this thing compromised with me the entire time,” Sterling said on his Weekly Scraps video podcast.

ESPN

2020-05-10 04:37

“Triple C’s out. You guys don’t have to hear my ass no more.” Henry Cejudo announces he’s retiring after defending the belt. #UFC249 https://t.co/I2aCWgjlEY

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Sterling aiming to extend winning streak

Since losing his UFC fight in 2017 against Marlon Moraes, Sterling has never been defeated again. Understandably, he will be looking to extend his winning streak to the ninth time and secure a third straight title in a row when he steps into the octagon at UFC 287.

Cejudo has previously reigned as a two-division UFC champion title, one for the bantamweight and one for flyweight. Had he accepted the contract to face Sterling on April 8, he would have had the chance to claim his second bantamweight title.

That said, UFC 287 has been confirmed to feature a bantamweight matchup between Rob Font and Adrian Yanez.