UFC 323 full final faceoffs with two title fights, three former champ
Check out the UFC 323 ceremonial weigh-in faceoffs, where the athletes from the 14-fight card had a final staredown ahead of Saturday’s event in Las Vegas.
MMA Junkie has live coverage of UFC 323 with round-by-round analysis of every fight.
Henry Cejudo and Payton Talbott meet on the main card of UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Check out this quick breakdown of the matchup from MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom.
Last event: 5-1
UFC main cards, 2025: 118-84-2
Henry Cejudo vs. Payton Talbott UFC 323 preview
Cejudo (16-5 MMA, 10-5 UFC) enters the final fight of his career on a three-fight skid. The former two-division champion’s return from his first retirement hasn’t been kind results-wise, dropping decisions to Aljamain Sterling, Merab Dvalishvili, and Song Yadong. Cejudo’s last win was a bantamweight title defense over Dominick Cruz, which marked his first retirement at UFC 249.
Cejudo’s sendoff comes against a friend and highly-touted up-and-comer in Talbott (10-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC). After suffering his first career loss in January to Raoni Barcelos, Talbott bounced back into the win column with a decision win over Felipe Lima in June. The 27-year-old’s other three UFC victories came by stoppage, two of which earned bonuses.
Henry Cejudo vs. Payton Talbott UFC 323 expert pick, prediction
Filling out the card is a crossroads fight at bantamweight between Henry Cejudo and Payton Talbott.
The last few years have not been kind to Cejudo from a competitive standpoint, but the former two-division champion refuses to go out on a loss before ultimately calling it a career. Still, I always have a hard time being confident in a fighter who announces their retirement intentions before a contest.
Although Cejudo is the far better wrestler on paper, “Triple C” has never been the most avid mat wrestler or submission artist – even in his prime.
Whereas Talbott, who is still young in his career and not far removed from his loss to Raoni Barcelos, shows solid fight-to-fight improvements to go along with some tangibles and intangibles that he brings to the table.
I don’t have my heart tied to any sort of outcome here, but I do suspect that Talbott’s knees will have Cejudo’s name written all over them.
The pick is for Talbott to make the Mackenzie Glue Factory proud by forcing a stoppage via strikes in Round 3.
Henry Cejudo vs. Payton Talbott UFC 323 odds
The oddsmakers and the public are favoring the younger fighter, listing Talbott -280 and Cejudo +220 via FanDuel.
Henry Cejudo vs. Payton Talbott UFC 323 start time, how to watch
Cejudo and Talbott are expected to walk to the cage at approximately 10:40 p.m. ET. The fight broadcasts live on ESPN pay-per-view.
