Henry Cejudo’s UFC 292 bout with Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera is off.
Cejudo, the former UFC two-division champion, was due to face Vera in a bantamweight contest on the August 19 card in Boston on the date of the 15th anniversary of his 2008 Olympic gold medal, but revealed on Instagram that an injury to his shoulder has ruled him out of the fight.
“Unfortunately due to my right shoulder, I won’t be able to fight,” Cejudo said on the social media platform. “I’ve already torn my left shoulder, where I was out for about a year. I don’t want it to tear further than what it already is. That being said, there’s a tear in there. The cat’s out the bag. It’s actually a 50 percent tear.
“I stretched it out to as much as I possibly could, because I love that ‘Chito’ Vera matchup, and for those that really know me, know I’m all about the money, that I’m all about competing.
“Nothing changes with my future goals. I want my title back. When I’m back to 100 percent, you’ll see me in the Octagon again. But until then, I need to heal. I hope the UFC can find a replacement to fight Chito so he could stay on the card, I would’ve loved to fight him in Boston on the 15-year anniversary of my gold medal. But I’ll be back.”
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The bout was due to be Cejudo’s attempt to get back to winning ways after losing to reigning 135-pound champion Aljamain Sterling in May in what was his return to the cage three years after announcing his retirement from the sport.
In response, Vera said: “Cejudo said. “At the end of the day, the guy that I still want, number one contender, his name is Merab [Dvalishvili]. So that’s what I’m looking forward to, and who knows guys, there could be a special matchup between me and Brandon Moreno if you guys think about it.”
