Henry Cejudo Undergoing Surgery, Likely Out Until Next Year

UFC flyweight and bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo has likely fought his final fight of 2019.

ESPN reports that Cejudo will be undergoing surgery on his left shoulder after tearing his subscapularis. The subscapularis is the most-used muscle in the shoulder and is part of the rotator cuff. The injury occurred during Cejudo’s fight against Marlon Moraes at UFC 238 this month.

“Triple C” finished Moraes in the third round to capture the vacant 135-pound title. Now, he reigns as the 125 and 135-pound champion for the Las Vegas-based promotion. However, it looks like both of those divisions will be on hold, as doctors have told Cejudo he will need four to five months of recovery time before being cleared to train.

That would put any possible return around the end of the year or the first quarter of 2020. It has been a big year for Cejudo, who downed TJ Dillashaw via first-round TKO in January, and followed that up by becoming the first-ever fighter in UFC history to have won an Olympic gold medal, and two UFC titles.

He has made a strong case for 2019 Fighter Of The Year. Not only is Cejudo dealing with a shoulder injury, but he also suffered a severe ankle injury prior to his fight against Moraes in Chicago. An unfortunate incident at the fighter’s hotel led to the injury, but Cejudo continued on with the fight, which he eventually won.

It remains to be seen how the UFC will handle the title picture moving forward at flyweight and bantamweight in Cejudo’s absence.