Coach discusses Chael Sonnen’s influence on Henry Cejudo

You’ve probably noticed that UFC flyweight champion Henry Cejudo has come out of his shell lately. Ahead of his UFC 238 bantamweight title fight with Marlon Moraes, he’s been talking trash and cutting promos in a way that he never has previously. According to his coach, that’s due in part to the influence of Chael Sonnen.

Speaking at a scrum this week, coach Eric Albarracin explained how Henry Cejudo has been influenced by the infamous trash talker Chael Sonnen (via MMA Fighting).

Apparently, it all began with a phone call.

“I said ‘let’s call him up, let’s call up Chael. If you’re going to get advice, get it from an expert,'” Albarracin said, explaining Henry Cejudo and Chael Sonnen first got in touch. “We called him up, they ended up speaking and going on [Sonnen’s] show when he went to Australia. He did like 30 minutes with him. Chael has been a big influence on Henry as far as him becoming himself.

“This was before [Cejudo] beat Demetrious [Johnson], yeah, before he beat Demetrious,” the coach added. “That’s when I said ‘let’s call him up, let’s get some advice from him.’ So that’s what we did.”

For proof of Chael Sonnen’s influence on Henry Cejudo, look no further than the video below. In this video, Cejudo can be seen cutting a promo that sounds like it’s straight out of the playbook of “The American Gangster” himself.

This might be the best thing MMA has given us this year. Killer promo by @HenryCejudo. pic.twitter.com/A5WGlQdesB

— Mike Bohn (@MikeBohn) June 4, 2019

“I’ve been called some nasty things in my life, and I’m sick of it,” the flyweight champ began. “I’ve been called a gold digger. I’ve been called a son of a GOAT. I’ve been called an Olympic Champion, a UFC Champion, Hall of Famer, author, dream catcher, dream snatcher, GOAT killer, the King of Cringe, the greatest combat athlete of all time. But never have I been called ‘the p-word’ and I’m sick of it. On June 8, that’s all going to change. I will be the next pound-for-pound king. You can tell Daniel Cormier, you can tell Jon Jones, you can tell Khabib Nurmagomedov that there’s a new sheriff in town, and his name is Henry Cejudo. And guess what, Dana White, if you’re watching, he happens to be a flyweight.”

Catch Henry Cejudo back in action at UFC 238 this Saturday when he takes on Marlon Moraes for the bantamweight strap.

This article first appeared on BJPENN.COM on 6/5/2019.