Henry Cejudo gets a second chance at a UFC flyweight career on Saturday when he faces former title contender Chris Cariaso at UFC 185. He already fumbled the opportunity once before, but he’s determined not to do it again.

Cejudo was scheduled to make his octagon debut at UFC 177 in August. Unfortunately, his weight cut went awry, and he was pulled from the event due to medical issues. It wasn’t the first time Cejudo has struggled to make weight for a fight, so UFC President Dana White insisted he move to bantamweight.

The 28-year-old obliged, and at UFC on FOX 13 in December, Cejudo finally got in the octagon and earned a dominant unanimous-decision victory over Dustin Kimura.

Cejudo’s performance was so impressive it allowed him to bargain with White for another chance at flyweight. The UFC boss agreed, and the 2008 Olympic gold medalist in freestyle wrestling did everything in his power to prevent history from rearing its ugly head.

“Everything that happened in August really discouraged me – it really did,” Cejudo told MMAjunkie. “I felt extremely bad. I felt like I let the whole Olympic movement down. I got myself a good nutritionist. I got a CT scan of my body and went back to the scientific way of doing it. I have a nutritionist living with me, cooking my food, weighing it, portioning out a lot of things, and it’s very detailed now. When I hit 135, I was struggling. Now it’s not even bad.”

Cejudo began competitive wrestling when he was 5 and managed to become the youngest Olympic wrestling champion in U.S. history, so his MMA weight-cutting issues surprised many. While that past experience is invaluable, Cejudo said he could no longer use the same weight-loss tactics. As a result, Cejudo hired nutritionist Brendan Tierney to help drop weight in a safe and efficient manner.

“I got a nutritionist, and I started doing some things different,” Cejudo said. “The majority of wrestling is good, but the 10 percent that is bad is the weight-cutting. We’re extremists. We can deal with death. There have been deaths in wrestling due to cutting-weight. It happens, and I don’t want to be one of those statistics. Not anymore. It’s too embarrassing.”

Cejudo claims he’s learned many lessons since the UFC 177 incident nearly seven months ago. It was an admittedly humiliating situation that Cejudo never wants to experience again. The only way to make sure that happens, he said, is to prepare with relentless intensity.

“I wanted to get back to my roots and roll up my sleeves, so I got back to training like I’m in the ghetto again,” Cejudo said. “That’s just what I’ve been doing. I’ve been putting myself in prison – putting myself in pain, putting myself in suffering so I can succeed. It’s a good type of suffering. That suffering makes me meaner. Suffering makes me hungry. Suffering allows me to put some hurt in my opponent. It’s a good thing.”

Cejudo’s inability to consistently make weight has sparked doubts about his commitment. It’s clear the natural talent exists, but does the passion to succeed come with it? Cejudo said it does. He first just had to discover how to harness it correctly.

“Not everyone thinks like me,” Cejudo said. “That’s my biggest asset. Anyone who says I’m a scatterbrain, that’s kind of funny. I’m the most strong-willed kid that you’ll ever meet. Anybody that can win the Olympics and be the youngest to ever do it, and be in high school and get every scholarship offer possible, and leave home at 16 and become the best in the world at age 21, is someone that has a powerful mind and a big heart.”

With his career now headed in the right direction, Cejudo is prepared turn up the volume and show the world his true capabilities. His victory over Kimura three months ago was an eye-opener, but Cejudo said it’s just a sliver of his overall skillset.

Cejudo (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) hopes to show much more of that ability against Cariaso (17-6 MMA, 7-4 UFC). The flyweight bout opens the UFC 185 pay-per-view main card following prelims on FX and UFC Fight Pass at American Airlines Center in Dallas.

Cariaso enters the contest with a loss in his last bout, but that defeat came to reigning UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson in a September 2014 title fight at UFC 178. “Kamikaze” marks Cejudo’s highest-profile opponent to date and serves as a true measuring stick for his place in the division.

Cejudo said he respects Cariaso, but he also believes the timing for this fight couldn’t be any worse for his opponent.

“I understand that he’s tough, but to beat Henry Cejudo, you might have to bring an AK-47 and a couple dudes,” Cejudo said. “He’s a fighter. That’s all I can say. In my mind I want to say things that I probably shouldn’t. That’s just because I’m so confident that I want to give him that respect as a fighter. I’m just ready.

“They can give me whomever they want. I’m a competitor. I can compete. People will see I’m a very smart fighter. I adjust, and I’m strategic. That’s it. Give me a top-10 (opponent). Give me a top-five, I’ll go through them all. This is who I am. I’m a born fighter. I’ve been doing this since I was a kid. I have a God-given ability, and I’m here to praise that.”

Although he has just seven pro fights, Cejudo’s athlete acumen makes him an instant factor at flyweight or bantamweight. Like most fighters, his ultimate goal is to have a UFC belt around his waist, but he’s not in a rush to make it happen.

While 125-pound champ Johnson and 135-pound champion T.J. Dillashaw are angling for a fight with each other down the line, Cejudo knows he’s a considerable roadblock who must be disposed of before any champion looks for fights in another division.

Cejudo believes he’s capable of dethroning either titleholder. He’s not there yet, but “The Messenger” is confident he’ll force perspective to shift once he’s locked in the octagon with Cariaso at UFC 185.

“I think T.J. Dillashaw and Demetrious Johnson – I’m a bad matchup for both of them,” Cejudo said. “I’ve got good standup, good wrestling, and they can talk about their super fight, but I would love to fight both of them at either weight class. I’m a competitor. Eventually after 125, I can go up and challenge (at 135).

“I’m a very creative fighter that’s very explosive and can outwrestle you or outbox you or out-kick you. There’s a new sheriff in town, and he’s cracking the whip. Don’t overlook me. There’s a peak alpha in the room and the flyweights know that.”

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