After defending his bantamweight belt against Dominick Cruz at UFC 249, champion Henry “Triple C” Cejudo unexpectedly retired from mixed martial arts. Triple C won the fight by TKO at the end of the second round and notched his first official bantamweight title defense.
During his post-fight interview with Joe Rogan, 33-year-old Triple C retired from the sport. It’s unclear at the moment if the champ is truly walking away from the sport or not. Here is a video of Cejudo retiring:
Triple C out. 🏆🏅🏆
The bantamweight champion said, “I’m retiring tonight Joe. I’m 33 years old, I’m happy with my career. Again, Uncle Dana, I want to say thank you for everything. You’re the man.”
He continued, “Triple C’s out. You guys don’t have to hear my a** no more.”
With his victory over Cruz, Triple C improved his professional mixed martial arts record to 15-2, and he increased his win streak to five.
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Cejudo’s Head Coach Eric Albarracin Said There Was Something Off With Triple C This Week
Cejudo’s head coach, Eric Albarracin, spoke with ESPN’s Brett Okamoto after the champion defended his title. Okamoto provided Albarracin’s comment:
Comment from Henry Cejudo (@HenryCejudo) head coach Eric Albarracin (@CPTdasAmericas) on tonight’s surprising retirement.
He said:
Henry has been No. 1 in whatever sport he’s been in for over half his life now. With that being said, I still believe he’s in his prime. I only think he’s getting better. It’s a somber moment when someone retires in his prime. I understand it though. We’ve been on a hell of a run. I’ve been with him since 2004. He’s gotten it done, every goal we’ve ever set, he’s accomplished. He’s beaten every legend they set in front of him.
I know Henry. There was something a little bit off this week. I didn’t know what it was. I was trying to figure it out, but I couldn’t put my finger on it. I was ready to have him call out Jose Aldo, Alex Volkanovski and Conor McGregor after this fight, and he told me no. I think if Dana White were to add another zero to his paycheck, he’d have a hard time not coming back, but maybe he just does want to move on.
UFC 249 Was Stacked With 2 Title Fights
Main Card
Tony Ferguson vs. Justin Gaethje – Lightweight Interim Championship Bout
Henry Cejudo vs. Dominick Cruz – Bantamweight Championship Bout
Francis Ngannou vs. Jairzinho Rozenstruik – Heavyweight Bout
Jeremy Stephens vs. Calvin Kattar – Featherweight Bout
Greg Hardy vs. Yorgan de Castro – Heavyweight Bout
Preliminary Card
Anthony Pettis vs. Donald Cerrone – Welterweight Bout
Aleksei Oleinik vs. Fabricio Werdum – Heavyweight Bout
Carla Esparza vs. Michelle Waterson – Women’s Strawweight Bout
Vicente Luque vs. Niko Price – Welterweight Bout
Early Preliminary Card
Bryce Mitchell vs. Charles Rosa – Featherweight Bout
Ryan Spann vs. Sam Alvey – Light Heavyweight Bout
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Henry Cejudo Unexpectedly Retires at UFC 249 After Win [WATCH]