UFC’s Yair Rodriguez has skills to boost MMA past boxing in Mexico
Boxing is part of the fabric of life in Mexico. Along with soccer, it is one of the two most popular sports in the country. Television ratings are astronomical. Star boxers became national icons.
Yair Rodriguez grew up in that environment, where Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. may be the most revered celebrity in the country.
Like so many of his countrymen, Rodriguez learned to fight at an early age. But his story isn’t so typical because he never had too much interest in boxing.
His parents started him in taekwondo as a 5-year-old, and he always enjoyed kicking as much as he did punching.
“I started liking boxing, but just [punching] was never enough for me,” Rodriguez said.
And so he began a path that he hopes will one day lead to a shot at the UFC featherweight title, perhaps this year. He’s one of the sport’s most dynamic strikers, a kicker in the mold of a young Anthony Pettis, daring enough to try just about anything and gifted enough to pull it off.
One of the ways he got into mixed martial arts, though, was by watching videos on YouTube. One fighter stood out to him.
He watched B.J. Penn’s fight highlights and his training and his interviews and he was sold.
“I saw a video of him training where he jumped right out of the pool, and I said, ‘Whoa!’” Rodriguez said. “He was doing all this crazy stuff and I really liked it. It inspired me.”
There is thus a certain bit of irony that the biggest fight of his short UFC career thus far will come against Penn on Sunday on Fox Sports 1 in Phoenix.
The man he idolized for so long has become the man standing in his path to the top.
It can be overwhelming to fight a legend – think of how many young boxers grew up idolizing Muhammad Ali, and then had to walk into the ring with him as his talents were fading and he was moving inexorably toward the end – but Rodriguez shrugs it off.
“I am not caught up in all the talk about fighting a legend,” Rodriguez said. “B.J. is a legend in this sport; everyone knows about him. You can appreciate what he has done and meant to the sport, but also know that he’s another guy in your way.
“I don’t know where a win will put me, but I’m thankful for this fight because it is a pretty big shot. I don’t think too much about what will happen if I win. I guess with one more win, or maybe the next one after that, I might be ready to go for a title shot. I’m happy to be part of this and I respect him so much, but I have to fight my fight.”
Rodriguez won “The Ultimate Fighter: Latin America,” in 2014 and is already 5-0 in the UFC. He’s had two Fight of the Night honors as well as a Performance of the Night and he’s one of the sport’s most electrifying young performers with his acrobatic style and unusual collection of kicks and knees.
He scored one of 2016’s most sensational knockouts with a head-kick knockout of Andre Fili on April 23 at UFC 197 in Las Vegas.
Rodriguez jumped and gave the impression he was going to throw a right kick. But he switched in mid-air and then caught Fili in the face with his left shin.
Fili crashed to the mat and Rodriguez walked away, knowing the fight was over.
It was that moment that he became a player in one of the sport’s most competitive and talent-rich divisions. He could also play a big role in increasing the popularity of the sport in Mexico with an impressive win.
Former heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez was on the verge of superstardom in Mexico after the UFC spent years there promoting him, but then he was beaten by Fabricio Werdum.
If Rodriguez, who was born in Mexico, can hit it big and win the right fight, there is no telling how high the ceiling may be for him. And it would then likely carry the sport to another level.
“I was involved in that thing we did with Cain, which we started at the ground level, and he was huge there,” UFC president Dana White said. “He didn’t deliver, though. When it was time to step up and become this big, huge famous superstar, he caved. Everything was teed up, merchandise was going crazy, people loved him, and then he lost.
“This kid [Rodriguez] is real and he’s from there. I like him a lot. He reminds me of [ex-lightweight champion] Anthony Pettis, but he’s a lot younger and greener. But he has super potential, he really goes.”
Going from poverty in Mexico to the bright lights and sell-out crowd in Las Vegas was a long and at times difficult journey. The Rodriguez family once lost everything, he said, including their home.
He had to work multiple jobs to help the family survive. He bagged groceries, washed cars, worked in a convenience store and did carpentry.
But he also found time to fight, and the way it’s looking, it’s a good thing he did.
He’s a creative fighter who has found innovative ways to land his strikes. His kicks are quickly becoming the thing of legend in the sport, and he works on them hard. But there are some he can’t do with his coach, Mike Valle, in the cage.
“Some of the crazy ones I do, I cannot throw with my coach, because I might hurt him,” Rodriguez said. “I like to try new things and even in the fight sometimes, I may invent something and give it a try.”
If he lands one of those on Penn, it’s going to garner him plenty of attention. But he seems serious when he says he doesn’t want to get ahead of himself.
“It’s important to understand this sport,” he said. “And you learn very quickly to respect all opponents. Anything can happen in this sport at any time, and you can’t take anything for granted. I want to prepare my best so that I have no excuses when I fight. Just get in there, do my best and try to make something happen.”
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