The UFC schedule is packed with even more great fights this weekend, including a UFC bantamweight title fight between champion Aljamain Sterling and former champ Henry Cejudo. Cejudo is coming off a three-year layoff and will look to take the crown off of Sterling’s head this weekend.
Read further for more information and a Sterling vs Cejudo betting analysis and prediction ahead of this weekend’s event. Insiders Betting Digest is the place for all the betting information on the UFC next fight coming up.
Sterling vs. Cejudo Information
Aljamain Sterling vs Henry Cejudo
Location of the game: Prudential Center, Newark, New Jersey.
Date and Time: May 6, 2023. 10 PM ET
How to Watch: ESPN+
Last Fight Record
Sterling is coming off an impressive performance, dominating TJ Dillashaw in a title defense last October.
Cejudo is making his first appearance since 2020, when he defended his bantamweight title against UFC legend Dominick Cruz before announcing his retirement in the octagon.
Sterling vs. Cejudo Betting Analysis
Aljamain Sterling
What else can people say about Aljo Sterling? For being one of the most hated-on champions in UFC history, he has done nothing but win fights for years now. Sterling has a 22-3 professional MMA record, with 3 TKO/KO wins and 8 submissions. He also has an 8-fight winning streak heading into this weekend.
If you look at Sterling’s UFC statistics, it shows pure domination over his tenure with the company. He averages 4.70 significant strikes landed per minute, with only 2.18 significant strikes absorbed in that minute as well. He also has landed 1.98 takedowns per 15 minutes in the octagon.
Henry Cejudo
The self-proclaimed greatest combat sports athlete ever is back in the mix after a 3-year retirement. Cejudo is undoubtedly one of the most decorated combat sports athletes ever, and he isn’t afraid to tell you. He is 16-2 in professional MMA, with 8 TKO/KO victories and zero submissions. With the Olympic gold background in wrestling, he is world-class in basically every area of MMA.
Cejudo averages 3.92 sig. strikes landed per minute, and only absorbs an average of 2.77. The story of this fight will be wrestling exchanges between the two. Cejudo comes into this weekend with an incredible 93% takedown defense, and 2.12 takedowns per 15 minutes in the octagon.
Updates
No injuries have been reported to the UFC or New Jersey Athletic Commission.
Sterling vs. Cejudo Betting Preview
When breaking down the Sterling vs Cejudo betting preview, it is clear how closely-matched and interesting this fight is. Oddsmakers have a tough job with this one, figuring out how well Cejudo will fight coming off the layoff.
This is the perfect matchup for the UFC this weekend. The majority of sportsbooks have this as a pick ‘em fight, but you can get either fighter as a slight betting favorite in other places. We haven’t seen a fight going both ways in the betting lines like this in a while.
Let’s just say both men have -110 moneylines. This gives us good value in both picks, so the only thing you need to focus on is predicting which fighter will get his hand raised.
The most interesting props available are the over/under at 4.5 rounds, and Sterling winning a decision at +225.
Sterling vs. Cejudo Betting Prediction
There are so many factors of this fight that we can break down, but let’s make this as simple as possible since UFC predictions are already hard enough.
- The official Sterling vs Cejudo betting prediction is that Sterling will get his hand raised in the octagon on Saturday night.
Some people might have the argument that Cejudo is someone you can’t bet against, but he isn’t quite on that level for us.
Sterling is freakishly strong, awkward, and has been active. He is in the middle of his reign as champion and only wants to keep getting better, while moving up to featherweight in the near future.
Cejudo is coming off getting married and starting his family, and there’s no doubt he is running his own training camp. Becoming a family man and running the show at the gym is not a good combination to fight at a championship level.
Sterling is going to be too strong and conditioned too well for Cejudo to handle for 25 minutes. Don’t be surprised if the experience and the pressure leads to Cejudo getting his back taken multiple times in the championship rounds.
If you love sports and want more sports betting information follow us as @InsidersBetDig on Twitter and sign up to our mailing list for free betting picks.
