Henry Cejudo is making the wrong decision

I know I just wrote something earlier this week about Brian Ortega and retirement talk. In that piece, I said that it's not up to fans to decide when a fighter will retire. Well, I'm eating my own words and going back on what I said.

Henry Cejudo should retire. Again.

The MMA world was stunned when, after defeating Dominick Cruz on May 9, 2020, he retired. Seemingly at the top of his game and in the prime of his career.

Cejudo announced he'd return for a run at the title by fighting Aljamain Sterling on May 6, 2023, almost exacly three years later. He lost that fight but decided to give it one more shot and fought Merab Dvalishvili on Feb. 17, 2024.

Before that fight, he promised to retire if he didn't win. Well ... spoiler alert ... he didn't win and now he's saying he's not retiring.

Henry Cejudo is not retiring after all

“If I could change everything, I probably would never come back, but now that I’m back, I got to sh*t where I sleep,” Cejudo said in a video on his YouTube channel. “For that reason, I cannot go out like that. So I’m here today ladies and gentlemen, taking my word back as a man, confronting you guys, you the people, you my fans, you my family, you my friends, you the haters, that I just cannot go out like this. Guys, to say the least, it is far from over with the ‘Triple C.'”

No Henry, you don't have to keep fighting. You are ruining your legacy.

He should have never retired in the first place or returned when he did. He needs to cut his losses and ride off in the sunset. The UFC isn't going to give him anyone that will further his legacy at this point. He's squandered what little chances he had left.

It's time for Cejudo to call it a day. No one would fault him for it, but fans might if he keeps fighting and losing. There is nothing left for Cejudo to achieve, and that's a great thing. Stop trying to live in the past, your glory days are behind you.