UFC 298 main event: Merab Dvalishvili defeats Henry Cejudo for 10th consecutive win

Henry Cejudo's career was on the line at UFC 298. Merab Dvalishvili won, and Robert Whittaker and Ian Garry also triumphed.

Henry Cejudo's career hung in the balance Saturday night at Honda Center, where he faced bantamweight Merab Dvalishvili at UFC 298. Cejudo, a former Olympic gold medalist and UFC double champion, had declared that he would retire if he couldn't beat Dvalishvili. In the third round, Dvalishvili scooped up the 37-year-old Cejudo, carried him across the Octagon and dumped him, securing a unanimous-decision victory that seemed to signal the end of Cejudo's career. Despite Dvalishvili's celebration, Cejudo removed his gloves, a sign of potential retirement, and paced the ring. However, he was not given an opportunity to address the crowd and his possible retirement.

Dvalishvili has now won 10 fights in a row, with his last three victories over former champions Cejudo, Petr Yan, and Jose Aldo. He called out 135-pound champion Sean O'Malley after the fight. Former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker also made a statement in his push for another title shot, surviving a Paulo Costa head kick to secure a unanimous-decision victory. Undefeated Irish welterweight Ian Machado Garry earned a split-decision victory over Geoff Neal, despite being booed by the crowd. Anthony Hernandez also emerged victorious with a second-round submission of Roman Kopylov.

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