Cejudo pulls off shocker, ends Johnson’s UFC reign

LOS ANGELES – Henry Cejudo pulled off one of the most impressive upsets in mixed martial arts history at UFC 227.

T.J. Dillashaw simply repeated himself, only quicker.

Cejudo ended Demetrious Johnson’s nearly six-year reign as the UFC flyweight champion Saturday night at Staples Center, earning a split-decision victory over the most dominant active champion in the sport.

In the main event moments later, Dillashaw defended his bantamweight title with a vicious first-round stoppage of former champ Cody Garbrandt, beating his friend-turned-rival for the second time in nine months.

Cejudo (13-2) is an Olympic gold medal-winning wrestler who only started training in mixed martial arts five years ago, but he used five takedowns and relentless offense to earn the decision over the fighter widely considered the pound-for-pound best in MMA.

Cejudo won 28-27 on two of the three judges’ scorecards to beat Johnson (27-3-1), who had won 13 consecutive fights since 2012 and had defended his 125-pound belt a UFC-record 11 straight times.