4. Alexander Volkanovski vs Henry Cejudo
Why does this fight make the list now when it hasn’t before?
Truth be told, the landscape has now become very different at both featherweight and bantamweight. Aljamain Sterling rules the roost in easily the most competitive iteration of the bantamweight division and is expected to field a challenge from either Cejudo or Sean O’Malley next in 2023. Volkanovski is on the verge of virtual sweep at featherweight and could be bringing a lightweight title back to the weight class should he be victorious against Islam Makhachev in February.
Where does Cejudo fit into these plans? As a former two-division champion who never lost either title in the cage, he enters as the most decorated challenger at both 135 and 145 pounds. Should Cejudo wrest his former bantamweight title away from Sterling, the possibility of a featherweight title shot in late 2023 would make for compelling theater as he pursues a record breaking title in a third UFC weight class. Considering that Volkanovski would likely also face the winner of the bout between Yair Rodriguez and Josh Emmett later in the year, potentially as a two-division champion, and the fight takes on a whole life of its own in terms of intrigue.
