Tag: Eric Albarracin

Henry Cejudo removes longtime coach Eric Albarracin from his fight camp ahead of UFC 298

Henry Cejudo and Eric AlbarracinIt’s either win or go home for Henry Cejudo on February 17. The former two-division world champion returns to…

Henry Cejudo and Eric Albarracin

It’s either win or go home for Henry Cejudo on February 17.

The former two-division world champion returns to the Octagon at UFC 298 in Anaheim nine months removed from his split decision loss against then-bantamweight titleholder Aljamain Sterling. This time, ‘Triple C’ will square off with Sterling’s best friend and No. 2 ranked contender at 135, Merab Dvalishvili.

If Cejudo wins, he will likely face the winner of next month’s bantamweight title tilt between defending champ ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley and Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera. But if he loses, it could bring an end to his iconic UFC career.

“This is for the No. 1 contender spot,” Cejudo said in an interview on The HJR Experiment. “I think after losing to Aljamain, I think if I was going to go maybe down the ladder, I would probably be done with fighting again. Yeah, man. Because it’s just like, this sport is hard, man. Training camps, having two kids and things like that. It’s all or nothing, man.”

Facing a do-or-die situation, Henry Cejudo is taking some extreme steps to give himself the best possible shot at snapping Dvalishvili’s nine-fight win streak. During the latest episode of UFC Countdown, ‘Triple C’ broke the news to his longtime coach — Eric Albarracin — that his services would not be needed for what could be the final fight camp of Cejudo’s career.

“You were with me for my last Olympic trials,” Cejudo told Albarracin. “You’ve been there for me, but as of right now… I just want to let you know for this camp, I’m getting rid of specific coaches. You included.”

“Sometimes you are too close to somebody and people just get too comfortable,” Cejudo added.

Throughout his illustrious run as a mixed martial arts coach, Albarracin has coached Bellator stars Patricio Pitbull and Patricky Pitbull, former UFC flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo, one-time UFC title challenger Paulo Costa, and the recently retired ‘Korean Zombie’ Chan Sung Jung. All in all, he has coached 13 world champions.

Cejudo’s decision to relieve Albarracin of his duties ahead of UFC 298 earned mixed reactions from fight fans — some commending the Olympic gold medalist for doing whatever it takes to win while others disparaged his decision to break the news on camera.

“Great to see Cejudo’s willing to do whatever it takes.”

“Interesting move by Triple C.”

“Bringing a camera crew to have that conversation with someone is wild.”

“He’s going all in.”

“That had to be hard for Cejudo and of course, it’s gonna hurt Eric it’d be weird if it didn’t sting a little but they’re pros they know what they need.”

“Why is this idiot doing it on camera?”

Paulo Costa’s coach, Eric Albarracin, accuses Khamzat Chimaev camp of sabotaging his fighter with crank calls

Paulo CostaPaulo Costa’s coach, Eric Albarracin, has accused the Khamzat Chimaev camp of resorting to some old school tactics in an effort to sabotage their fight camp. In just over a week’s time, Costa and Chimaev will return to the Octagon for the first time in more than a year when the two men square off […]

Paulo Costa

Paulo Costa’s coach, Eric Albarracin, has accused the Khamzat Chimaev camp of resorting to some old school tactics in an effort to sabotage their fight camp.

In just over a week’s time, Costa and Chimaev will return to the Octagon for the first time in more than a year when the two men square off in a potential middleweight title eliminator as part of UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi.

Ahead of their highly anticipated clash, Costa, alongside his coach, appeared on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani and suggested that Chimaev and his crew were going out of there way to make things a bit more difficult for ‘The Eraser’ as they march toward fight night.

“We were in the (hotel) lobby together. We were outside in the parking lot, they were in the lobby. I mean, tensions were high because the last time they saw each other at the UFC PI, you guys saw what almost went down,” Albarracin said. “You know, with the biggest fight in UAE history going down in two weeks, what is the reason why three weeks ago we’re staying at a hotel with no security?”

Albarracin Believes Paulo Costa Will Earn a Title Shot at UFC 294

Adding insult to injury, Paulo Costa is still recovering from surgery after contracting a nasty infection in his elbow. Despite the ominous nature of the injury, Costa remains insistent that he will be ready to go come October 21.

“After that happened, people started calling us in the middle of the night, waking us up. So, there’s just been some sabotaging going on on his end, trying to keep us with the jet lag,” Albarracin continued. “But it’s not gonna work because this time we came out super early to right what was wrong, what happened last time we came out here to Abu Dhabi. ‘Secret Juice Costa’ now, he’s cold, he’s calculated. He’s recalibrated, he’s reformulated. He’s smarter than ever. This time in Abu Dhabi, we’re getting that title shot” (h/t MMA Mania).

Long before Costa and Chimaev were scheduled to scrap inside the Octagon, the pair had a run-in at the UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas in the days leading up to UFC 279. More than a year later, they’ll finally settle their differences inside the Octagon in the UAE.

Ronda Rousey urged to consider UFC return, featherweight move: ‘She should save the weight class’

Ronda Rousey urged to make UFC return at featherweight save the divisionInaugural bantamweight champion, Ronda Rousey has been urged to consider making both a UFC return following a lengthy hiatus from the sport – as well as a featherweight birth, in order to “save” a division which has seen little activity since its inception. Rousey, the inaugural UFC bantamweight champion and former Strikeforce gold holder, has […]

Ronda Rousey urged to make UFC return at featherweight save the division

Inaugural bantamweight champion, Ronda Rousey has been urged to consider making both a UFC return following a lengthy hiatus from the sport – as well as a featherweight birth, in order to “save” a division which has seen little activity since its inception.

Rousey, the inaugural UFC bantamweight champion and former Strikeforce gold holder, has been sidelined from combat sports competition since headlining UFC 207 back in December 2016, suffering a brutal 48-second TKO loss to former two-weight champion, Amanda Nunes.

And off the back of the staggering championship challenge loss to the Brazilian, Rousey, who’s sole other professional defeat came in the form of her title defeat to Holly Holm the prior year in a blistering second round high-kick KO, made the successful move to professional wrestling with the WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment).

Ronda Rousey linked with potential UFC comeback

Earlier this month, however, the future of the bantamweight title and the entirety of the featherweight division was cast into doubt, following the official retirement of former two-weight champion, Nunes.

And with former titleholder, Julianna Peña calling for a vacant title fight return, Ronda Rousey has been pegged as a potential opponent for the Washington native in what would come as a shocking Octagon comeback. 

Tipped as likely the most deserving fighter to make a return to the sport and challenge for a title immediately, Rousey was backed to complete such a feat by UFC play-by-play lead, Jon Anik. 

“In a true meritocracy, that’s not gonna sit well with me nor the athletes that have been donating blood, sweat, and tears to mixed martial arts over the last several years,” Jon Anik said. “If anyone is worthy of that opportunity, it’s probably Ronda Rousey, and I do believe that she would be competitive. She wouldn’t enter that setting without the guarantee that she would be competitive.”

“But, I didn’t like that Henry Cejudo came back and cut the line of a bunch of 35ers that have been active,” Anik explained. “So it would be hypocritical of me to say ‘Absolutely’ – but if there were ever a time, it would be absolutely now.”

And according to the aforenoted, Cejudo’s head coach, Eric Albarracin, Rousey should consider making a featherweight division move if she ever makes a comeback to the Octagon.

“Should be [at] 145lbs,” Albarracin posted on social media of a potential return of Ronda Rousey to the UFC. “To save the weight class.”

Bi Nguyen details uncomfortable run-in with MMA coach Eric Albarracin in Las Vegas nightclub: ‘He was drunk’

Bi NguyenBi Nguyen revealed details regarding an uncomfortable run-in she had with mixed martial arts coach Eric Albarracin at a Las Vegas hotspot. ‘Killer Bee’ recently made her professional boxing debut under the Gamebred Boxing banner last month, securing a win over Andy Nguyen. Prior to that, Bi Nguyen competed in the Asia-based promotion ONE Championship […]

Bi Nguyen

Bi Nguyen revealed details regarding an uncomfortable run-in she had with mixed martial arts coach Eric Albarracin at a Las Vegas hotspot.

‘Killer Bee’ recently made her professional boxing debut under the Gamebred Boxing banner last month, securing a win over Andy Nguyen. Prior to that, Bi Nguyen competed in the Asia-based promotion ONE Championship and squared off with some of the organization’s top stars, including Stamp Fairtex.

On Wednesday, Bi Nguyen made an in-studio appearance on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani to discuss her time with ONE, her appearance on the long-running reality series Survivor, and her plans for the future. During their conversation, Nguyen revealed that Eric Albarracin, the coach of former two-division UFC champion Henry Cejudo and middleweight contender Paulo Costa, touched her inappropriately while at a nightclub. “I’ve had run-ins with that guy,” Nguyen said before elaborating on her comment.

“We don’t have any relationship now, but I’ve had a bad run-in with him in Vegas for sure,” Nguyen continued.

“He was drunk. We were at a club. We were at Hakkasan together and he grabbed my arm and then he like, touched my butt,” Nguyen revealed. “And I was like, ‘Should I do something?’ And I didn’t, but I’m down to be cool with him, but that was a bad run-in with him.”

Albarracin, known by many as ‘Captain Eric’, is a retired American wrestler who captured a silver medal at the Pan American Championships and the Military World Wrestling Championships. He previously appeared as a coach on The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 2 and The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil 3.

Bi Nguyen Transitions from Mixed Martial Artist to Combat Sports Management

While Bi Nguyen intends on continuing her combat sports career on a limited basis, including a potential foray into bare-knuckle MMA, ‘Killer Bee’ is currently transitioning into combat sports management full-time.

“I represented myself for most of my career after I had one manager and I let them go and I represented myself,” Nguyen said. “I got myself on TV. I got myself on all kinds of different things that a lot of fighters don’t think about. I knew if I could do it myself, I could do it much better for fighters. And towards the end, my record wasn’t going so well and I was still making more money and doing things outside than somebody who’s 6-0 like Erin Blanchfield. So I was like, if I can do that with my career, I can do much more with theirs.”

Coach Eric Albarracin Confirms Henry Cejudo Will Be Returning To The UFC At 135lbs In 2022

Henry CejudoIt sounds like we can expect to see Henry Cejudo back in the Octagon sooner rather than later. Renowned MMA coach Eric Albarracin appeared on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani and confirmed that his most decorated fighter is planning a return to the UFC with some fairly big ambitions.  “Triple C will officially become […]

Henry Cejudo

It sounds like we can expect to see Henry Cejudo back in the Octagon sooner rather than later.

Renowned MMA coach Eric Albarracin appeared on The MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani and confirmed that his most decorated fighter is planning a return to the UFC with some fairly big ambitions. 

“Triple C will officially become C4 this year,” said Albarracin. “He is back in the USADA (U.S. Anti-Doping Agency) pool. He dove head first into it. You know Henry comes from the Olympic Training Center been tested since he was a sophomore in high school so he’ll be good to go as soon as the USADA, I guess that period of testing is done.”

Henry Cejudo’s manager Ali Abdelaziz confirmed to ESPN in April that ‘Triple C’ had re-entered the USADA testing pool.

“He’ll be good to go. He’s already in training, said Albarracin. “You know, Henry never really stopped training. When Henry was coaching, it was awesome. He was there every day and sometimes, you always hear that athletes, when you become a coach, you become better, but you’re still not in your prime. It’s hard to go back. Henry is still in his prime. He became a coach, one of the best coaches in the game. You saw what he did with Figueiredo. You saw what he did with Zhang Weili. He helped bring on Jon Jones and Jiri Prochazka. I mean, this guy was putting in work.

“Now he’s learned, he’s studied and now he’s got the opportunity to come back and he’s coming for more gold for sure.”

Henry Cejudo Is Coming Back for More Gold

When asked if Henry Cejudo would be returning with featherweight gold on his mind, Albarracin confirmed that a showing at 145 was one of their goals, but ‘Triple C’ would initially set his sights on the UFC’s bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling.

“The word on the street is 35, so I think he’s coming after Aljamain,” said Albarracin. “But I do think if he comes back and gets the 135 title, he can move up and an immediate world title shot at 145 whether it’s Volkanovski or Max Holloway.”

Albarracin also stated that Cejudo expects to return for an immediate title shot as early as October when his USADA testing period ends. 

Cejudo retired from mixed martial arts after defeating Dominick Cruz at UFC 249. Cejudo went 10-2 under the UFC banner, winning both the flyweight and bantamweight championships in the process. Since his retirement, Cejudo has made appearances for Khabib Nurmagomedov’s Eagle FC promotion and All Elite Wrestling.

Are you excited to see ‘Triple C’ Henry Cejudo return to the UFC?

Patricio Pitbull Praises AJ McKee, Interested In Lightweight Rematch

PitbullPatricio Pitbull wants to run things back with AJ McKee. Pitbull lost his featherweight title after suffering a first-round submission defeat to McKee in the finals of the featherweight grand prix at Bellator 263 last night. It was the Brazilian’s first defeat since 2016, but he is already looking ahead to the future. “I am […]

Pitbull

Patricio Pitbull wants to run things back with AJ McKee.

Pitbull lost his featherweight title after suffering a first-round submission defeat to McKee in the finals of the featherweight grand prix at Bellator 263 last night.

It was the Brazilian’s first defeat since 2016, but he is already looking ahead to the future.

“I am always motivated. My debut was in 2004, and now I have a lot of years fighting and dedicating myself to this game, and I am hungry every time,” Freire said post-fight (via Sherdog). “I spent a lot of years without being defeated, and today is a new day for me. It’s a different kind of feeling, and I want to rest a little bit, enjoy my son, my wife.

“But I will come back stronger. I know that. Everyone says that when they get a defeat, but I am different.”

As for McKee? Pitbull had nothing but good things to say about the new 145-pound king as he made no excuses.

“On this night, he was great,” Freire said. “He kicked my head, and he almost knocked me out, and he almost finished me. He was good, congratulations.”

However, Pitbull unsurprisingly wants a rematch and with McKee talking about moving up, the former would love to defend his lightweight crown against him.

“Before the fight I think he told somebody something like this, and it’s a good thing,” Freire added. “He beat me in the featherweight division. I know he’s big, he has trouble cutting weight. And let’s think about it. I have a belt. I’m still a world champion.”

Do you want to see them run things back at 155 pounds?