This Wasn’t the Way it Was Meant to Go… Henry Cejudo Demolished TJ Dillashaw in 32 Seconds in their Main Event in New York…
Dana White will surely be shaking his head in disgust. The narrative has well and truly been destroyed, now that Henry Cejudo ran through TJ Dillashaw to defend his flyweight title for the first time, against arguably the greatest bantamweight ever. Cejudo was the underdog coming into this one – just as he was against Demetrious Johnson – but he managed to stun the MMA world once again.
Much was made of Dillashaw’s condition coming into this one. Would he be too drained by his savage weight cut, to be able to fight to his full potential? Or would his size advantage, slick striking and overall well-rounded game be enough to conquer the Olympic gold medallist?
It turned out not to be for Dillashaw, as his dream of becoming a UFC double champion was perhaps destroyed forever. Instead, it was Cejudo who would go home with the shiny new Legacy Championship belt.
@HenryCejudo mauls TJ Dillashaw with a VIOLENT TKO finish in just 34 seconds at #UFCBROOKLYN
— MMA Raw & Uncut (@mma_uncut) January 20, 2019
Trainwreck
This was as one-sided as it gets. The two men came out of the blocks fast, but it was Cejudo who was able to put an end to it with just over half a minute gone on the clock. He landed a kick to the bantamweight champion’s head, stunning Dillashaw. Then he swarmed the stricken fighter with a flurry of punches.
Dillashaw scrambled desperately and did his best to hang on in there and survive, while the referee gave him every opportunity to show that he was defending himself. However, it was all too much for the 135lb champion and after 32 seconds it was all over, in a very impressive win for the division’s champion.
Rematch?
Immediately after conquering his foe, Cejudo offered Dillashaw a rematch at bantamweight. It will be a reversal of the champion v champion match-up that we just had, with ‘The Messenger’ getting the opportunity to become a two-division champion. This might not have been appealing to the UFC before, but now that Cejudo has proven he can beat TJ, this might be the only way that they can get rid of the 125lb division. Cejudo said:
“I’ve busted my butt my whole life. I was able to beat one of the greatest of all time. It’s surreal. I knew he was hurt. I caught him with that head kick and felt him wobble. The rest was history.”
“TJ, we can do it again. This time we’ll do it at 135 pounds,” Cejudo said. “I’ll give you another shot at 135 pounds!”
Unlucky T.J on your attempt at Champ Champ™️ status.
Respect for your weight cut. I have been there and it is not easy.
Unlucky Henry on your attempt at fastest K.O in a UFC title fight.
I have been there, and I still am.
Congrats on the win.
Yours truly,
The O.G Champ Champ.— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) January 20, 2019
Not the Plan
MMA consistently continues to defy the script. On a night where former NFL star Greg Hardy was disqualified for an illegal knee, in the co-main event, the UFC top brass will not have been happy to see Cejudo defend successfully against his decorated challenger. Dillashaw had been bragging about how he’d conquer the division before it was closed, and then move up to fight featherweight champion, Max Holloway. Yeah, good luck with that.
However, this might be an opportunity for the UFC. In Cejudo they have a genuinely exciting and microphone friendly flyweight champion. Is it too late for the division? Possibly. But Cejudo isn’t going to leave without a fight.
