Gregory Rodrigues made his UFC debut earlier this year with a three-round unanimous decision win over Dusko Todorovic, and he believes it couldn’t have gone any better.
Ahead of his return at UFC Vegas 41 this weekend, “Robocop” reflected on the Todorovic fight in an exclusive interview with Cageside Press.
“That’s a dream come true. I believe most of the fighters, they want in the UFC. That’s the dream for them, and for me it’s not different,” Rodrigues (10-3) explained. “I worked for my whole life to get this opportunity. I made it happen in June, and now I’m to go in my second fight. I’m so excited to go in the UFC octagon again. That’s a pleasure for me, the only thing I feel right now is I’m so happy to do this, to do what I love, and especially now in the UFC.”
Looking back, Rodrigues sees his first bout in the promotion as “a perfect debut in the UFC.”
“Fight three rounds against Dusko [Todorovic]— Dusko is a very tough fighter, I respect him. Two of my last fights before the UFC were by knockout, one in second and the other one in the first round. So the knockout was expected in this fight, but for me it was good to be there for three rounds and get a very tough fight, because that taught me a lot,” Rodrigues told us. “Especially now inside the UFC, I know all the fighters, that’s like the World Cup. All the fighters there are very tough fighters, and I need to test myself in every fight. So the debut for me was amazing, it was perfect.”
Rodrigues was especially happy with his stand-up, and gas tank in the Todorovic fight. “I think it was the best way to debut into the UFC, so I’m happy for it.”
At UFC Vegas 41, the former LFA middleweight champ rides a three-fight win streak into his bout with Jun Yong Park.
“I think that’s a nice fight for me. Especially this time, Jun has four fights in the UFC, coming off three straight wins. He’s had good experience inside the UFC cage, but I know who I am, and I know where I want to go,” Rodrigues stated. “I know where I come from. So that’s great for me, he just will be one more guy in front of me. Always I say, my opponent doesn’t have a face. I look at them, and that’s the guy in front of me I need to pass to go where I want to go.”
Watch our full interview with UFC Vegas 41 middleweight Gregory Rodrigues above. The event takes place this Saturday, October 23 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
