The oddsmakers have the fight virtually set as a pick ‘em. However, pushing up against other people’s expectations is nothing new for Cejudo, who is blunt about his assessment of Sterling’s championship reign since he got the belt after eating an illegal knee via Petr Yan in their first fight.
“I’m not impressed, and that’s quite frank,” Cejudo said. “He won his belt via Academy Award. He barely won (the second) fight against Yan, which I rewatched and was like, ‘Man, he got gifted a decision.’ His fight with TJ (Dillashaw), TJ didn’t have a shoulder. Yeah, he has three wins, but that’s just the honest answer. I was impressed by the fact that he was able to come back and beat Yan, but other than that, I just don’t see him as a better competitor than me.”
The Best Feeling In The World
UFC 288 goes down just three days shy of the three-year anniversary of Cejudo’s last fight. That one, a TKO win over former bantamweight king Dominick Cruz, came in an empty Vystar Arena in Jacksonville, Floirda, during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
When Cejudo revealed his decision – even though many, including Cha, believed they’d see Cejudo eventually return – the only people in the crowd were UFC staff and his team. It felt like a relatively unceremonious farewell for the self-declared “greatest combat athlete of all-time,” especially one with his own brand of showmanship like Cejudo.
Throughout fight week, Cejudo and Sterling are almost guaranteed to trade verbal jabs. They are not only two of the best fighters on the planet, but two men experienced and comfortable with a microphone in their face. Then, on May 6, he’ll walk into what is likely to feel like enemy territory for the New York-bred Sterling, but with someone as deft at compartmentalizing his focus like Cejudo is, none of that matters all that much compared to the opportunity at hand.
