Despite a “six-figure contract” Yair Rodriguez didn’t have much left in the bank after winning the TUF Latin America finale. He spent seven months on the sidelines waiting for his next fight after his last win, and it apparently left him skint. He revealed in a post fight interview with Ariel Helwani that he had less than $400 left in the bank going in to his fight with Charles Rosa. Now, with a $50,000 performance of the night bonus in his pocket, as well as his show and win money, things are going a lot better.
“This means so much for me, bro. My last fight was in November. It’s a long time until this fight. But, I’m proud that I can be here and that means so much for me. Dana White just came to talk with me and say that was a great fight, and I’m just so happy. And I’m going to keep going forward and keep training hard.”
Rodriguez also talked about comparisons Joe Rogan made during the fight, calling him a combination of Jon Jones and Anthony Pettis:
“I’m pretty happy. These guys are very good. These guys are, like, my inspirations in this sport. But, I think I have my own style, I have Yair Rodriguez’s style, and it’s what I’m working with my coaches, is this style.”
And, of course, throwing up on himself in the cage after the fight:
“After a fight, never. But in my sparrings, my hard trainings with these guys, almost every day. I train hard with them and I think it’s just I was poisoned or something in my food.
Probably, I don’t know. It’s not an excuse. It’s just, I was so nervous at the end of the fight, I was so tired. But I feel good that I could win the fight.”
Rodriguez looks like a talented fighter on the rise, and I wouldn’t be at all surprised if we see a lot more of him as a fighter the UFC is really interested in promoting as main card talent as they make future trips to Mexico.
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