Henry Cejudo proclaims “Triple C is coming back”

From the sounds of it, Henry Cejudo plans on ending his retirement from mixed martial arts competition.

Cejudo, a former Olympic gold medalist and two-division UFC champion, announced his retirement from MMA in May of 2020, after defending the UFC bantamweight title with a TKO victory over Dominick Cruz. Contrary to that retirement announcement, he’s been teasing a comeback ever since, and that comeback suddenly seems to be closer than ever to reality.

During an appearance on ESPN’s SportsNation after Saturday’s UFC 259 card, “Triple C” proclaimed—point blank—that he is coming back. Whether we can take that comment as official confirmation remains to be seen, but it’s certainly an interesting development.

See what he had to say below:

Triple C is… back? Maybe? 🤔 (via @SportsNation) pic.twitter.com/O6zk02PajQ

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) March 8, 2021

“I’d like to line up both Petr Yan and Aljamain ‘Curling Sterling’ Silver at the same time,” Cejudo began, referencing UFC’s 259’s Yan vs. Sterling bantamweight title fight, which Yan lost via disqualification due to an illegal knee. “I’d like to beat up both of them.

“You guys stay tuned, man,” Cejudo concluded as the interview ended. “Triple C is coming back!”

That sign-off line from Cejudo left the hosts of the show scratching their heads, wondering weather the former champion had officially announced his comeback on their show. They’re likely not alone in their curiosity.

Henry Cejudo first captured UFC gold in 2018, when he picked up a razor-close decision victory over pound-for-pound great Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson to win the UFC flyweight title. He then defended that title with a first-round knockout of former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw, before moving up to bantamweight to search for a second belt.

Cejudo achieved his dream of becoming a two-division UFC champion in June of 2019, when he defeated Marlon Moraes by TKO to win the vacant bantamweight title. He then defended that title with the aforementioned win over Cruz, before announcing his retirement from competition.

Do you think Henry Cejudo will return to action this year?