'I'm here to give my best'; Henry Cejudo cuts out confident figure ahead of UFC 288 fight against Aljamain Sterling

Henry Cejudo carried his young daughter to podium and plopped her on his lap until she got restless and slired off as dad explained why he’s breaking a three-year retirement to fight again inside a c.

Cejudo’s wife eventually ducked under a row of cameras and whisked away ir cooing daughter, America.

Someone had to keep an eye on ir 1-year-old girl.

Sort of how Cejudo says Aljamain Sterling has kept UFC’s 135-pound championship warm for him during his absence.

“He’s babysitting my belt,” Cejudo said.

Cejudo, only person to win an Olympic gold medal and a UFC title, held that bantamweight crown when he abruptly retired in May 2020 after he successfully defended championship against Dominick Cruz.

Some critics said Cejudo’s retirement was a negotiating tactic. But 36-year-old fighter insisted he was simply out of challenges after achieving all he could in mixed martial arts.

So Cejudo called it a day and decided to train fighters at Jackson’s MMA Acoma gym in Arizona. He married wife, Karolina, had a baby and ar one is due this year. Meanwhile, bantamweight belt shuffled from waist to waist before Sterling unified division last April and he won his last defense against T.J. Dillashaw in October.

se must be reasons why Cejudo ended his sabbatical, right? For his wife, who will be among crowd Saturday night at UFC 288. To reclaim championship he never lost against a fighter Cejudo believes doesn’t have credentials to rival his MMA pedigree. To truly etch his name on short list of greatest pound-for-pound UFC fighters in history.

Sometimes, though, answer for why fighters fight is easy one.

“Because it’s easy money,” Cejudo said.

Well, re you go. But explanation for his comeback does, in fact, dive a bit deeper than a lucrative payday. Cejudo rattled off a list of fantastic fighters he helped train during his break and realized he still had elite skill level needed to compete at highest level.

“As good as se guys are, I also start to understand my ability a little more,” Cejudo said.

33-year-old Sterling said he thought Cejudo's comeback “was a joke” when fight was first pitched to him.

“He's been sitting on sideline just making YouTube videos and just criticizing everybody after he just quit and took himself out of competition," he said.

Cejudo can only hope this comeback goes better than his last one as an amateur.

At 21, Cejudo became youngest American to capture an Olympic wrestling gold medal when he won freestyle 55-kilogram division in 2008.

Cejudo, a native of Phoenix who grew up in poverty as one of six children, stepped away from sport for three years to write a book, fulfill speaking engments and speak out on immigration issues. Though Cejudo eventually returned to mat, he fell short of an Olympic repeat when he lost in semifinals of 2012 U.S. Olympic trials.

He made his MMA debut in 2013, joined UFC a year later and became fourth fighter to hold titles in two different weight classes simultaneously, and second to defend titles in two different weight divisions. And he was still a champ when he quit.

“Even if I never came back, I’m happy with my career,” Cejudo said. “I can retire w and I’d be alright. But I love fact that this fight can put me in a category -- you may t like persona, you might t like ‘ Cringe’ - but you will definitely respect me and put me on gold mountain.”

Cejudo said a win in main event at Prudential Center in New Jersey after such a lengthy break would rank him among all-time greats with fighters such as Jon Jones and Georges St. Pierre. St. Pierre ended a four-year break and beat Michael Bisping in 2017 to win middleweight championship and Jones sat out three years before he returned in March and won heavyweight crown.

Cejudo joked he ate fried chicken during his time off and his weight got up to “eugh to break ice.” But reality was, Cejudo spent most of past year training for this comeback.

Cejudo said it was a conversation with former rival Demetrious Johnson -- y split ir two UFC fights -- that spurred his interest in fighting again. Johnson didn’t understand why Cejudo wasn’t fighting when he had plenty left in tank. Cejudo told Johnson his new family, training and or business ventures brought him eugh fulfillment that he he didn’t have to step inside octagon.

“Yeah,” Johnson told him, “but fighting is easiest way to make money.”

“I was like, he’s right!!” Cejudo said, laughing.

Perhaps, but Cejudo said re would be more retirements on Saturday and already started shouting out his next opponents. He said Sterling was thing more than a tune-up to bigger fights — and paydays — ahead.

“I'm here to give my best,” he said. “That's it.”

It might be eugh to become a UFC champion one more time.