Rising 27-Year-Old Bantamweight Set to Face the Triple Threat of ‘Triple C’
Henry Cejudo, or ‘Triple C,’ s a former two-division champion in the UFC. So who dares challenge a veteran of the sport at UFC 323? Enter the younger Payton Talbott. Payton maintains he accepted this fight not because he is driven by challenge. A possible win here is indeed a challenge, as crowds barely favor his current evolution as developed enough to secure a win against Henry. However, Henry has earned an evenly skilled fight to go out on, as he has also announced this will be his last fight in the UFC. A victory for ‘Triple C’ would be a great close to a legendary career, but a loss could be viewed as the older guard giving a rite of passage to a budding fighter’s career. The greatest result, though, is the future respect each will earn from the other.
However, ‘Triple C’ is very much a triple threat to Payton, and this should be considered when favoring how he wins against a younger opponent. For example, his record of 16-5-0 versus Talbott's 10-1-0 highlights the time he spent in the ring has not been for nothing. Furthermore, he has a higher defense rating than the younger fighter when standing, which may prevent any loss like he had in his past three fights. If Talbott gets close, there is the threat of a takedown being made by Henry. This is because not only does he lead by attempts, but also his accuracy when he makes them.
Payton could lose the ground game, but there is room for him to have advantages over Henry. He could use Cejudo’s attempts to take him down as a ploy to capitalize on his reach while standing. This would allow him to deliver blow after blow to Cejudo before he attempts a submission like a rear naked choke. A submission like that would make this supporting fight to the main card memorable for the young fighter. He is projected to dominate striking encounters from his reach and the number of strikes he lands per minute. In this category, he lands double the amount of strikes as his opponent, with even greater accuracy.
Ultimately, this fight is difficult to determine a winner because each fighter’s strength is balanced by the other fighter’s weakness. The hope is that ‘Triple C’ will finish all rounds with a story to tell as he retires from the UFC. The story could be told as a tough fight that led to the last win of his career, or the story could be of how he pressed Payton to push his limits. If Payton wins, it would be to his benefit to acknowledge the experience gained from someone who could share knowledge of how to go between two weight divisions and secure title wins. The only way to know for sure is to witness them in action at UFC 323.
