- Aljamain Sterling is the slight -120 betting favorite against Henry Cejudo (+100).
- The UFC is finalizing a bantamweight title fight between Sterling and Cejudo for May 6th at UFC 288.
- This will mark Sterling’s third title defense and Cejudo’s first bout in three years.
UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has opened as the slight -120 betting favorite for his upcoming title defense against former champion Henry Cejudo.
Cejudo, who will be fighting for the first time in three years, came back at even money odds when the betting lines opened at online sportsbook BetOnline on Tuesday. The two are expected to meet at UFC 288 on May 6th.
The UFC has not officially announced the May 6 event but it is expected to be a pay-per-view event. UFC 288 also does not have a location or venue as of yet. According to MMAJunkie, the contracts for this highly anticipated bout are expected to be issued and signed soon.
UFC is finalizing a bantamweight title fight between Aljamain Sterling and Henry Cejudo, both fighters announced on social media.
Contracts have not been signed, but the title fight is being targeted for May 6. pic.twitter.com/33RgMaplyb
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 21, 2023
Aljo was Favorite to Be Cejudo’s Comeback Fight Opponent
Cejudo retired from the UFC after defeating Dominick Cruz as the -230 betting favorite at UFC 249. But while he stopped fighting after that, he never really walked away from the sport as he always made rounds during the promotion’s big events and kept talking about the UFC on social media.
Last April, Cejudo re-entered the UFC’s Drug Testing pool in order to compete once again. There were many names linked to Triple C’s comeback but Aljamain Sterling was the +150 betting favorite at BetOnline to be the guy. T.J. Dillashaw and Alexander Volkanovski were listed as the next candidates with odds of +325 and +350 respectively.
Dillashaw ended up fighting Sterling at UFC 280 last October 22 while Volkanovski moved up in weight to challenge Islam Makhachev at UFC 284 earlier this month. Cejudo intensified his callouts of Sterling and the champion kept barking back at him.
Later, it appeared like the two were on a collision course in early 2023 when both fighters claimed that they had agreed to fight each other but then Aljo announced last month that the Cejudo fight will not happen in March because of a lingering injury.
A look at the odds of Henry Cejudo’s potential return opponent. Who will it be? 👀
50% Sign-up bonus at https://t.co/DndAsDXnKd with code “ONPOINT”! pic.twitter.com/ih1xjhpZ4v
— MMA On Point (@OnPointMMA) April 29, 2022
Triple C Eyeing to Win Back Gold
Triple C will be looking to win back the gold that he never lost inside the octagon. Cejudo won the vacant UFC bantamweight title with a third-round knockout of Marlon Moraes at UFC 238. In that fight, Cejudo closed as the +145 betting underdog at the top UFC sportsbooks.
That victory made Cejudo the fourth fighter in UFC history to hold two different championship belts simultaneously, and the second to defend world titles in two different weight classes after defeating Cruz. Triple C is also the only fighter to win an Olympic gold medal and a UFC title.
Prior to becoming bantamweight champion, Cejudo ended Demetrious Johnson’s long reign as UFC flyweight champion. Mighty Mouse had gone undefeated for seven years and made seven successful defenses of the flyweight title before Cejudo upset him as a heavy +385 betting underdog at UFC 197.
Cejudo then defeated Dillashaw in a champion vs. champion bout at UFC Fight Night 143 in 2019 in a fight for Triple C’s flyweight belt. Once again, Cejudo entered the fight as the betting underdog at +205 odds. But as he did against Johnson, he pulled off a stunning upset.
Sterling Looking for Respect
Sterling is on an impressive run of 8 straight victories, including three consecutive title fights. However, despite already making two successful defenses of the UFC bantamweight title, Master Funk is still looking for the respect that he truly deserves.
Aljo’s rise from the ranks is unquestionable. He upset Jimmie Rivera as the +120 betting underdog, then put up convincing wins over Pedro Munhoz and Cody Sandhagen as the slight -160 and -125 favorite, respectively. Those string of wins earned him a shot at the bantamweight title, then held by Petr Yan.
At UFC 259, Sterling challenged Yan for the UFC bantamweight title as the +125 betting underdog. In that bout, Yan illegally struck Sterling when he was down on one knee, causing the latter to be unable to continue. The referee awarded Sterling the title via disqualification in a decision that became controversial.
But Sterling proved his worth when he defeated Yan in an immediate rematch at UFC 273. Despite being the champion, Sterling faced Yan as a heavy +310 betting underdog. Once again, Aljo proved his doubters wrong. Then in his last bout, Master Funk knocked out T.J. Dillashaw in a fight where the champ closed at -190 odds.
Sterling vs Cejudo an Even Fight
Although the oddsmakers have Sterling as the slight favorite here, the odds are very close and MMA experts believe that Sterling vs Cejudo is an even fight. Master Funk himself acknowledged that during his recent podcast:
“I can’t wait for this matchup, because I think that it’s two guys that won’t back down, and I think the wrestling might cancel each other out – we will see if I’m able to rag-doll him.”
That might be easier said than done. Cejudo has a 93% takedown defense and has been taken down only once in the UFC, by Demetrious Johnson at UFC 227. Triple C also averages 2.12 takedowns landed per 15 minutes, just about the same as Sterling’s 1.98 takedowns.
This marks only the second time in four title bouts that Sterling has opened as the betting favorite although he is 3-0 during the first three instances, including 2-0 against Yan. Meanwhile, Cejudo will be the betting underdog in his third consecutive title challenge but is also 2-0 during his first two attempts to win a new belt.
