Farewell, legend! Henry Cejudo resists as best he can, but retires with a loss at UFC 323.

Cejudo celebrates victory in the UFC. Photo: Reproduction/X/UFC

MMA said goodbye to another legend. Henry Cejudo fought for the last time in his career at UFC 323, an event held this Saturday (6), in Las Vegas (USA), and ended his career in the sport with a defeat. The veteran had difficulty dealing with the promising Payton Talbott and lost by unanimous decision.

Moreover, the new setback extended Cejudo's bad streak. This was 'Triple C's' fourth consecutive loss and his last. On the other hand, Talbott secured his second consecutive victory, the biggest of his MMA career.

See too

Karine Killer puts up a tough fight, but ends up defeated at UFC 323.

Brunno Hulk puts in a brilliant fight and defeats former title challenger at UFC 323.

Edson Barboza pays a high price for his aggressiveness and is knocked out at UFC 323.

Henry Cejudo, 38, is a legend in combat sports. At his peak, the American won the gold medal in wrestling at the Beijing Olympics (China) in 2008, and in the UFC, he was champion in the flyweight (up to 57 kg) and bantamweight (up to 61,2 kg) divisions.

War at the farewell

Aggressive, Cejudo delivered powerful low kicks to Talbott. Calmly, Talbott rocked Cejudo with his first punch. Despite the height disadvantage, Cejudo continued attacking, but received punches and kicks. A wrestling specialist, Cejudo tried to take Talbott down, but failed. Standing, the veteran continued to pressure and took Talbott down, who quickly got back to his feet. In response, Talbott surprised and took down the Olympic wrestling champion. On top, Talbott delivered punches to Cejudo. Standing, Talbott landed a clean straight punch on Cejudo and, again, took him down easily.

At the start of the second round, Talbott once again rocked Cejudo with his striking. Even at a disadvantage, Cejudo resisted and, on the ground, managed to get on top of Talbott. However, Cejudo did little and lost the position. In the striking exchanges, Talbott landed a beautiful sequence on Cejudo, hitting straight punches, an uppercut, and a knee. Without giving up, Cejudo rocked Talbott. Resilient, Talbott almost knocked Cejudo out. Bleeding, Cejudo remained standing and advancing.

In the third and final round, Cejudo and Talbott didn't let up. Sharp on his feet, Talbott punished Cejudo with his jabs and straight punches. In the clinch, Talbott delivered knees and elbows to Cejudo. Attempting a takedown, Talbott ended up underneath Cejudo, but quickly got back to his feet. Bleeding and tired, Cejudo didn't give up, but suffered from the volume of Talbott's strikes. In the final seconds, Talbott almost knocked Cejudo out with a powerful punch to the midsection. At the end of the fight, the athletes embraced, displaying great sportsmanship.

Former champion and Valter Walker's partner draw in battle.

In the opening bout of the main card, Jan Blachowicz and Bogdan Guskov delivered a true battle in the light heavyweight division (up to 93 kg). At the end of the 15 minutes of action, the fight between the former champion and Valter Walker's training partner ended in a draw (29-28, 28-28, 28-28).

The fight started intensely, with the athletes exchanging blows with everything they had. Guskov relied on punches, while Blachowicz focused on low kicks, his specialty. Guskov landed a beautiful straight right to his opponent's face, which made him stumble back. In response, Blachowicz delivered the same blow to his opponent, also causing him to retreat. Then, Blachowicz again landed a powerful punch on Guskov's face. In turn, Guskov also landed a forceful blow on Blachowicz's face.

In the second round, Guskov landed a powerful punch that knocked Blachowicz down. On top, Guskov punished the veteran with punches and elbows. Bleeding, the former champion didn't give up and resisted as best he could. Upon receiving one of the elbows, Blachowicz even screamed in pain. With the fight in his hands, Guskov continued to strike Blachowicz. In the third and final round, Blachowicz returned aggressively. A warrior, Blachowicz landed crosses on Guskov. However, Guskov, faster, continued to deliver jabs and straight punches to the veteran.

Desperate, Blachowicz went on the attack and landed powerful blows on his opponent. Feeling the pressure from the veteran, Guskov complained of being poked in the eye, but the referee did not stop the fight. Sensing the 'smell of blood', Blachowicz pursued Guskov and focused on a high volume of strikes. More concerned with defending himself, Guskov attacked little. In the final seconds, the former champion rocked Guskov and almost knocked him out. Thus, the three judges declared the fight a draw.

Results UFC 323

MAIN CARD

Bantamweight title (up to 61,2 kg): Petr Yan defeated Merab Dvalishvili by unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47)

Flyweight title (up to 57 kg): Joshua Van defeated Alexandre pantoja by technical knockout (arm injury) at 26 seconds of round 1

Flyweight (up to 57 kg): Tatsuro Taira defeated Brandon Moreno by technical knockout (punches) at 2:24 of round 2.

Bantamweight (up to 61,2 kg): Payton Talbott defeated Henry Cejudo by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Light heavyweight (up to 93 kg): Jan Blachowicz vs. Bogdan Guskov ended in a majority draw (29-28, 28-28, 28-28)

PRELIMINARY CARD

Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Manuel Torres defeated Grant Dawson by technical knockout (punches) at 2:25 of round 1.

Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Chris Duncan defeated Terrance McKinney by submission (Anaconda choke) at 2:30 of round 1.

Flyweight (up to 57 kg): Maycee Barber defeated Karina Silva by unanimous decision of the judges (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Fares Ziam defeated Nazim Sadykhov by technical knockout (elbows) at 4:59 of round 2.

Average weight (up to 83,9 kg): Bruno Hulk defeated Marvin Vettori by unanimous decision of the judges (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Lightweight (up to 70,3 kg): Jalin Turner defeated Edson Barboza by technical knockout (punches) at 2min24sec of R1

Light heavyweight (up to 93 kg): Iwo Baraniewski defeated Ibo Aslan by knockout (punch) at 1:29 of round 1.

Middleweight (up to 83,9 kg): Mansur Abdul-Malik defeated Antonio Trocoli by submission (standing guillotine choke) at 1 minute and 9 seconds of round 1.

Featherweight (up to 65,8 kg): Mairon Santos defeated Muhammad Naimov by technical knockout (punches) at 21 seconds of round 3.