According to recent reports, Henry Cejudo (16-3) will face Merab Dvalishvili (16-4) early in 2024, in an attempt to bounce back from his May Loss versus former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling.
Back in the Spring at UFC 288, Cejudo made his comeback to the sport after three years away from the Octagon. While he would fall short in his attempt at the 135-pound title versus Sterling, he decided that will not be his last match, and now has his sights set on the number two ranked Dvalishvili.
Henry Cejudo and Merab Dvalishvili have agreed to fight at UFC 297 on January 20th in Toronto Canada #UFC297 pic.twitter.com/VpZYx4fwE6
— MMA UNCENSORED (@MMAUNCENSORED1) October 30, 2023
Dvalishvili has not lost a bout since 2018, with his most recent wins coming by way of unanimous decisions over former champions in Petr Yan and Jose Aldo.
While no ink has hit paper with regard to the confirmation of this match, the speculation is that it could very well occur in January at UFC 297, which is slated to take place at the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto.
Prior to Cejudo’s retirement, he was the fourth fighter to hold belts at two weights simultaneously, achieving both the flyweight and bantamweight titles. He now sits at the third ranked position in the bantamweight division, just below Dvalishvili, making the logic behind this potential match make perfect sense.