Henry Cejudo’s retirement caught most by surprise.
And many believe it is only a matter of time before the former UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion returns.
Cejudo, who recently made an appearance on All Elite Wrestling alongside Mike Tyson, was asked by TMZ about a potential return to MMA. He made it clear that one thing that would change his mind would be a shot at reigning featherweight titleholder Alexander Volkanovski.
“I’ve done everything in MMA,” Cejudo said (thanks to MMA Fighting for the quotes). “I’m satisfied with my career. There would only be one fight that would really bring me back, that would really wake me up in the morning.
“That’s against other than Ryan Garcia, that would be Alexander Volkanovski, that overgrown midget.”
Volkanovski is expected to face former champion Max Holloway later this year.
Cejudo joined former champions Conor McGregor and Daniel Cormier, along with current double-champion Amanda Nunes, as the only fighters in UFC history to hold multiple titles at the same time.
His quest for the featherweight title would make him one-step ahead of those three.
“I want a third title because I want to be different,” Cejudo said. “There’s a lot of champ-champs. Obviously, there’s only one ‘Triple C.’ There’s only one Olympic champ, flyweight champ, bantamweight champion of the world but it’s just to cement it and go in the history books as the greatest mixed martial artist of all-time.”
Cejudo successfully defended his bantamweight title with a win over former champion Dominick Cruz in May. He also defended the flyweight title last year over T.J. Dillashaw before vacating it.
Garcia, who Cejudo also mentioned, is a top boxer with a record of 20-0. In February, he defended the WBC Silver lightweight title with a first round knockout over Francis Fonseca, and also has held the WBO-NABO title.