Christian Rodriguez needed a night like this.
After nearly a year away from the Octagon, two tough losses, and the heartbreaking loss of longtime coach Duke Roufus, the featherweight delivered one of the best performances of his career at UFC Vegas 119.
“Haven’t had a finish and I’ve been coming off two losses so it really feels good to get back in there, and show who I am,” Rodriguez told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.
“It means everything to me. I was with Duke for 14 years. He’s one of the reasons why I pursued this journey for so long. He engraved this head kick system in me. I know that he’d be proud of right now.”
Rodriguez made the decision to leave the midwest and go west. The move to Las Vegas came with plenty of sacrifices, but he says the way everyone at Xtreme Couture embraced him from day one has made every challenge worth it.
“I’ve been loving life out here. Feel like I have more sacrifices out here so living in Vegas has definitely been an adjustment to the midwest, but I’m very grateful for my team. It feels really warming that they pushed me since day 1,” he said.
“I’m just this random guy on the team and these guys like show love and support for me. It means the world.”
Rodriguez wasn’t about to start playing matchmaker after the victory over Amil. Instead, the featherweight said his focus is to stay active, keep stacking wins, and let the UFC decide who’s standing across from him next.
“No names right now. I like to stay busy though. Hopefully the UFC does a UFC Noche and if they think that’s a good timeline for me,” said Rodriguez.
“It’s been 10 months since I fought so let’s see what the UFC says. I’ve never turned anybody down. I’ll stay ready.”
Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Christian Rodriguez above.
