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Cejudo makes history against Johnson

Brendan Jones new author
Roar Rookie
5th August, 2018
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Demetrious Johnson doesn't get the plaudits he deserves. (AP Photo/John Locher)
Brendan Jones new author
Roar Rookie
5th August, 2018
5

In a miraculous upset, UFC flyweight champion Demetrious ‘Mighty Mouse’ Johnson lost his title to Henry Cejudo via split decision after the best flyweight fight the UFC has witnessed.

In a contest that was far too close to call, neither man gained any real advantage in the seesawing fight. The 2008 Olympic gold medal-winner Cejudo took the title from Johnson with the cards reading 47-48, 48-47 and 47-48 in his favour at the end of the fight.

Johnson took the first two rounds by controlling the bout with leg kicks and strikes, but in the later rounds, Cejudo used his wrestling skills to control Johnson, with several take-downs of the long-reigning champion.

It was enough for Cejudo to be declared only the second man to become the flyweight champion.

In a post-fight interview, the new champion Cejudo made his intentions known that he wants to follow in the steps of Conor McGregor, Georges St-Pierre and Daniel Cormier and become a dual champion, saying he wants to fight for the bantamweight title next.

Johnson is the first man to win the flyweight title and holds the record of 11 consecutive title defences. He said after the fight that he wants to go home to his wife and enjoy the birth of their third child.

While no word of a rematch was spoken, one would think that it would be on the cards sometime in the future.

In the bantamweight title, champion TJ Dillashaw successfully defended his title in a rematch with Cody Garbrandt.

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Dillashaw hit Garbrandt with a right hand similar to the shot that knocked him out in the first fight, sending the 27-year-old to the canvas.

He recovered, though, but he would not survive the first round, with Dillashaw putting on a flurry of punches and a knee before referee Herb Dean finally stepped in to stop the fight before further damage could be done.

With the victory Dillashaw moves his bantamweight win record to eight straight, the most in UFC history.

In a post-fight interview, Joe Rogan mentioned to Dillashaw the intentions of Cejudo, with the 32-year-old replying that he was more than happy to accommodate the challenge from the new flyweight champion.

Being that there are only ten pounds between the flyweight and bantamweight divisions, the step up for Cejudo would not be that difficult.

It seems that dual champions are becoming a trend in the UFC, with two being crowned in the last ten months alone.

At UFC 229 Conor McGregor returns to the UFC in an attempt to regain his lightweight (155 pounds) title against current champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.

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