Ex-UFC champ Cejudo set to box 'Euphoria' actor

• 

  Brett OkamotoSep 15, 2026, 09:59 AM ET

  Close

  Brett Okamoto has reported on mixed martial arts and boxing at ESPN since 2010. He has covered all of the biggest events in combat sports during that time, including in-depth interviews and features with names such as Dana White, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Conor McGregor, Nate Diaz, Floyd Mayweather, Manny Pacquiao and Georges St-Pierre. He was also a producer on the 30 for 30 film: "Chuck and Tito," which looked back at the careers and rivalry of Chuck Liddell and Tito Ortiz. He lives in Las Vegas, and is an avid, below-average golfer in his spare time.

Retired UFC champion Henry Cejudo has a new opponent for his professional boxing debut on Sept. 26 in Miami.

Cejudo will face Hollywood actor and professional boxing prospect Javon "Wanna" Walton (3-0-1, 1 KO) in the main event of Misfits Boxing inside James L. Knight Arena. A former two-division UFC champion, Cejudo was originally supposed to face influencer boxer Nurideen Shabazz, aka Dean The Great, but Shabazz was forced to withdraw due to injury.

"I knew all along that Dean The B---- would back out, and so I am not surprised," said Cejudo, in a statement released to ESPN. "But I have a new opponent now, who thinks he's a fighter, but Wanna will be playing another robot by the time I'm done with him."

Walton, 20, is best known for playing Ashtray in the HBO series Euphoria. He is a former amateur boxer, and turned professional in 2023.

"Henry Cejudo is an Olympic gold medalist and a former UFC champion, so I know exactly the level of athlete I'm stepping in there with," Walton said. "This fight came up out of nowhere and I stepped up without hesitation. I stay ready for moments like this. This is boxing, and this is my world."

Walton is currently signed to Jake Paul's Most Valuable Promotions, where he has gone 2-0 in appearances in December 2024 and September 2025. MVP, which is not promoting the event, signed off on Walton's involvement.

"Most Valuable Promotions will never stand in the way when we are presented with a meaningful opportunity for our athletes, even when we have no involvement in the event," said MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian. "Misfits offered us a significant financial guarantee for Wanna to step in on short notice against Henry Cejudo, an Olympic gold medalist and two-division UFC champion. It's a tremendous opportunity for Wanna to show the world why you don't play boxing and I am confident he will shine bright as the star he is and defeat a UFC great."