Report: Henry Cejudo sustains injury escaping fire, UFC 218 fight in jeopardy

It sounds like Henry Cejudo’s UFC 218 scrap with Sergio Pettis is in jeopardy.

According to a report from the San Francisco Chronicle, Cejudo was one of several athletes who was forced to flee from the Wine Country fires that are currently scorching California. When a blaze struck the Fountaingrove Inn in Santa Rosa, the former UFC flyweight title challenger was forced to evacuate by jumping from a second story balcony – a maneuver that reportedly caused him to break his ankle.

An ankle break, of course, would likely sideline Cejudo for some time. As such, his bout with Pettis at UFC 218, which is scheduled or December 4 in Detroit, could well be nixed. This is an undeniably unfortunate twist, as Cejudo and Pettis’ flyweight tilt was widely expected to produce the next flyweight title challenger.

When we last saw Cejudo in action, he smashed recent title challenger Wilson Reis to a first-round knockout win. Pettis, meanwhile, recently burst into title contention with a decision defeat of the surging Brandon Moreno.

UFC 218 will be headlined by a featherweight title fight between champion Max Holloway and challenger Frankie Edgar. It will also feature a lightweight showdown between The Ultimate Fighter coaches Justin Gaethje and Eddie Alvarez, and a heavyweight bout between top contenders Alistair Overeem and Francis Ngannou.

If Cejudo is indeed out of his bout with Pettis, it will mark the second time this pairing has fallen through, as the two flyweights were originally supposed to meet at UFC 211 in May.

UPDATE: Following the original publication of this article, Henry Cejudo confirmed with MMAJunkie that he didn’t break his ankle in the jump. The status of his UFC 218 fight, however, remains unclear. Fingers crossed it goes ahead as planned.

This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 10/10/2017.