Henry Cejudo's Coach Helped Prevent "Triple C" From Retiring Again

Henry Cejudo will be sticking around in pro MMA competition, and we may have coach Eric Albarracin to thank.

(via Zuffa LLC)

Former UFC Bantamweight and Flyweight Champion Henry Cejudo may have been swayed to keep fighting by his coach Eric Albarracin.

Cejudo returned to the Octagon at UFC 288 last Saturday night (May 6). He challenged Aljamain Sterling for the UFC Bantamweight Championship. "Triple C" retired back in 2020 as the 135-pound titleholder, and he was looking to reclaim the gold he was never defeated for.

Ultimately, Cejudo was defeated after five rounds of highly competitive action. Sterling was awarded the split decision win. Appearing on MMAFighting's "The MMA Hour," Albarracin revealed Cejudo was strongly taking retirement into consideration after the fight.

#ANDSTILL BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPION OF THE WORLD!!@FunkMasterMMA with the split decision over Henry Cejudo at #UFC288! pic.twitter.com/nUrECCcwtT

— UFC (@ufc) May 7, 2023

"He was saying it," Albarracin said. "A little bit in the back, when we watched the fight again, and then I was trying to get him back. 'Ah, if I can't be number one, I'm lost. I'm last, I'm here to be in this game, I'm here to be great.' I'm like, 'No, no, no. We can get Merab, number one contender. He can't take you down, come on.' So, then I had him going and then I was getting on the airport the next day, and I saw a tweet, and he was writing that he might be done again. I got out of line and I went back."

READ MORE: UFC Star Wants Judge Barred From Title Fights Following Sterling vs. Cejudo

Host Ariel Helwani asked Albarracin why he ditched his flight after seeing that Cejudo was mulling retirement.

"So he doesn't retire again," Albarracin said. "I stopped him from retiring that first time he did."

"Triple C" has since called for a showdown with Sterling's teammate Merab Dvalishvili. At the moment, Dvalishvili is recovering from a hand injury.

READ MORE: Daniel Cormier Scolds UFC Fans for Mistreatment of Aljamain Sterling

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