Henry Cejudo vs Jose Aldo targeted for UFC 250

UFC bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo is finally getting his wish to defend his title against former featherweight champion Jose Aldo.

According to Dana White, they’re targeting the fight for UFC 250 in Sao Paulo on May 9. The news was first reported by Combate and confirmed by Brett Okamoto of ESPN.

Dana White just conformed to me a report from @combate they are working on setting up a 135-pound title fight between Henry Cejudo and Jose Aldo in May in Brazil.
— Brett Okamoto (@bokamotoESPN) January 17, 2020

“Dana White just conformed to me a report from @combate they are working on setting up a 135-pound title fight between Henry Cejudo and Jose Aldo in May in Brazil,” Okamoto tweeted.

Henry Cejudo has had an extremely fruitful 2019. He knocked out TJ Dillashaw in just 32 seconds at the inaugural UFC on ESPN+ card in January last year and then knocked out Marlon Moraes in the third round at UFC 238 to become the new bantamweight champion.

He became the first UFC fighter to subsequently hold titles at flyweight and the bantamweight division in the UFC. Before that, he defeated then reigning pound-for-pound star Demetrious Johnson at UFC 227 via split decision.

On the other hand, Jose Aldo made his bantamweight debut at UFC 245 last year against Marlon Moraes. He lost the fight by a close decision. Despite his loss to Moraes, the former champion showed that he has the skills to compete at bantamweight.

Prior to his defeat at UFC 245, he lost to Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 238 last year. Both Cejudo and Aldo have called each other numerous times.

Petr Yan criticises Henry Cejudo for not wanting to fight him

While Aldo is without a doubt a legend in the sport, he hardly deserves a title shot coming off of a loss. Fighters like Petr Yan and Aljamain Sterling have repeatedly asked UFC to give them a title shot.

Petr Yan is coming off of an incredible knockout win over Urijah Faber at UFC 245. He has fought six times in the UFC and has been undefeated so far inside the organisation.

“I lost all respect for Cejudo. He doesn’t want to defend his belt against a real number one contender,” Petr Yan said to BJPENN.com in an interview last month. “He wants to fight someone with zero wins in 135 division and on a two-fight losing streak, and far from the peak of his career. UFC shouldn’t support this behaviour if they want to keep any significance to that belt. Honestly, it will be bad for the sport.”

“He is a triple clown who is trying to turn our sport into a circus. He knows I’m a terrible matchup for him,” he explained. “That’s why he is trying to avoid fighting me.”

Do you guys think Jose Aldo deserves a title shot at bantamweight coming off of a loss?