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Trainer Says Yair Rodriguez’s Desire to Become UFC Champion Is ‘In His Blood’



From nearly exiled to highlight-reel darling, Yair Rodriguez’s relationship with the Ultimate Fighting Championship has been a roller coaster in recent months.

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The Mexican featherweight was released by the UFC over the summer for what the promotion claimed was his refusal to accept a fight. The Las Vegas-based organization then rescinded his release in order to book a matchup with Zabit Magomedsharipov at UFC 228. Unfortunately, that bout fell through when Rodriguez suffered an injury and was forced to withdraw from the card.

“Pantera” wasn’t even supposed to be in Denver this past Saturday, but when Frankie Edgar pulled out of the UFC Fight Night 139 headliner against Chan Sung Jung due to a bicep injury, Rodriguez jumped at the opportunity.

“Two weeks ago, we were talking about going on vacation. We were getting ready to book flights and get out of town,” Rodriguez’s coach, Israel Martinez said in a post-fight interview with the UFC. “Then we got a call saying they wanted us to fight the Korean Zombie. He [Rodriguez] called me and I said, ‘You’re built for this. Let’s take it and let’s get his ass.’”

What transpired in the Octagon at the Pepsi Center in Denver on Saturday night was one of the most memorable fights in recent memory. A wildly entertaining battle reached a shocking conclusion with one second left in the fifth stanza when Rodriguez knocked Jung unconscious with a no-look upward elbow. Just like that, a leading candidate for both “Knockout of the Year” and “Fight of the Year” was born. Both Rodriguez and Jung were transported to the hospital after the fight.

“That’s Yair’s style,” Martinez said. “The goal with Yair is to keep him basic because fundamentally, he’s actually better than he he is flashy. He just loves to throw flash, that’s part of his game. If you let Yair start getting on his rhythm, you never know if he’s gonna find that spot. He found it tonight.”

Rodriguez was down on two of the three judges’ scorecards heading into the final round, so the finish was absolutely necessary.

“[The fight] didn’t work out the way we wanted it, but the finish is exactly what we wanted,” Martinez said. “Yair is a warrior and he’s got in him. There’s no doubt about that. It’s in his blood, it’s in his heart and it’s in his mind — he wants to be a champion. He’s gonna fight tooth and nail. He’s never gonna give up and we saw that tonight.

“Korean Zombie is an unbelievable guy. He was tagging us. He was going to work on us.”

Rodriguez was gone for more than a year following a humbling defeat against Edgar in May 2017. He now has a signature win to put on his resume and is 7-1 within the promotion overall. In his post-fight interview in the Octagon, Rodriguez sounded like a man who was happy to resolve his differences with the UFC.

“I’m just thinking whoever Sean Shelby, Dana White want to give me next, I don’t care,” Rodriguez said. “I know the title shot is going to be there eventually. I don’t care, whenever. The only thing that I care from now on is being happy every moment that I have. Being able to do what I love in the biggest company in the world.”

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