UFC 288 weigh-in results: Henry Cejudo on point after 3-year layoff, fighter misses by 3 pounds
Henry Cejudo wasted no time letting everyone know that “The King of Cringe” is back.
The returning former two-division champion was the first fighter to step the the scale at Friday’s official weigh-ins for UFC 288 and he made championship weight, coming in at 135 pounds on the dot. His main event opponent, defending bantamweight titleholder Aljamain Sterling, was the second-to-last fighter to weigh in, but he came in a pound under the limit at 134 pounds.
Watch highlights of the official weigh-ins above.
This marks Cejudo’s first weigh-in appearance in almost three years. Cejudo, 36, most recently fought in May 2020 at UFC 249, where he successfully defended the bantamweight title against Dominick Cruz and then announced his retirement in his post-fight interview.
Sterling seeks his third straight defense of the UFC bantamweight championship, which would set a company record (though Cruz logged four straight title defenses across the WEC and the UFC).
For the co-main event, top welterweight contenders Belal Muhammad and Gilbert Burns both made weight without issue, stepping to the scale at 170 and 171 pounds respectively.
Friday’s official weigh-ins were not without issue as one bout was cancelled and one was changed to a catchweight due to a fighter missing weight.
Zhalgas Zhumagulov successfully weighed in at 125.5 pounds only to later find out that opponent Rafael Estevam was pulled from their flyweight bout due to weight management issues. The bout has been cancelled.
Middleweight Joseph Holmes tipped the scales at 189 pounds, three pounds over the limit (including the one-pound allowance for a non-title fight). His bout with Claudio Ribeiro (185) will proceed as a catchweight with Holmes forfeiting 20 percent of his purse as penalty.
UFC 288 takes place Saturday at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J.
Check out the official weigh-in results below.
Main Card (ESPN+ PPV at 10 p.m. ET)
Aljamain Sterling (134) vs. Henry Cejudo (135)
Belal Muhammad (170) vs. Gilbert Burns (171)
Jessica Andrade (115) vs. Yan Xiaonan (115)
Movsar Evloev (145) vs. Diego Lopes (146)
Kron Gracie (145) vs. Charles Jourdain (145)
Preliminary Card (ESPN+ at 8 p.m. ET)
Drew Dober (155.5) vs. Matt Frevola (155)
Kennedy Nzechukwu (205) vs. Devin Clark (205)
Khaos Williams (169) vs. Rolando Bedoya (170)
Marina Rodriguez (115) vs. Virna Jandiroba (115)
Early Prelims (ESPN+, UFC Fight Pass at 6 p.m. ET)
Braxton Smith (262) vs. Parker Porter (249)
Phil Hawes (185) vs. Ikram Aliskerov (186)
Rafael Estevam* vs. Zhalgas Zhumagulov (125.5) — canceled
Joseph Holmes (189)** vs. Claudio Ribeiro (185)
*Estevam did not weigh in. The UFC announced that his bout with Zhalgas Zhumagulov has been canceled due to weight management issues on Estevam’s side
**Holmes missed weight. His bout with Claudio Ribeiro will proceed at a catchweight with Holmes forfeiting 20 percent of his purse