As Sean O’Malley addressed his no-decision against Pedro Munhoz at UFC 276 in a post-fight interview, he heard a familiar voice shouting at him from just a few feet away.
Former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo found his way backstage and decided to interrupt O’Malley to suggest a fight between them.
“Hey, Sean, if you want a matchup, he’s right here – I’d love a tune up,” Cejudo shouted in a video posted by ESPN’s Carlos Contreras Legaspi. “What do you say, precious? I’m good to go. What time would you like to bend your knees? When would you want to bend the knee? Because I believe you are absolutely .”
Henry Cejudo @HenryCejudo was escorted out of backstage after he interrupted Sean O’Malleys post fight interview.
“I’d love a tune up” @espnmma pic.twitter.com/mshj8O9pxN
— Carlos Contreras Legaspi (@CCLegaspi) July 3, 2022
Cejudo was eventually pulled away from the interview area, but O’Malley jumped at the chance to respond during the post-fight press conference a few minutes later.
” That little fat-ass ought to stay at home,” O’Malley stated. “He’s running around drunk in the backstage, [he] got escorted out. He kept tripping on things. Running into things. Looks like he’s on drugs. He looks fat. I don’t know if he’s having a midlife crisis or what.”
In fact, Cejudo has been preparing for a comeback after he retired in 2020; he’ll be eligible to compete again later this year after undergoing six months of drug testing by the United States Anti-Doping Agency. He re-entered the testing pool in April, which means he should be eligible to return in October.
Despite Cejudo calling him out, O’Malley was not convinced.
“He murmured words similar to [I was a tune-up fight],” O’Malley spoke. “Is that realistic? Is Henry coming back? He looks fat as s***. Does he want to fight in three years? I don’t understand .”
After the backstage altercation, Cejudo took to Twitter to respond to O’Malley, adding more fuel to the fire about a potential fight.
” I’ve knocked out one guy using [performance-enhancing drugs],, but I’ve never knocked down a man on PEDs that also looks like crackheads,” Cejudo told O’Malley. “Bend the knee b****.”
I already knocked out a guy on PEDs, but I’ve never knocked out a guy on PEDs who also looks like a crackhead. Bend the knee bitch https://t.co/3uBtcDVySU
— Henry Cejudo (@HenryCejudo) July 3, 2022
Given their animosity and the state of bantamweight, Cejudo might just have talked their way into fighting, given what the lay of the ground is.
While Cejudo was an ex-champion of the sport, Aljamain sterling currently holds that title and all indications point to a defense against T.J. Dillashaw this September. Although Petr Yan has lost to Sterling this year and is without an opponent, Cejudo already builds anticipation for the O’Malley showdown.
